Tag: Report

Chelsea 1-6 Spurs (U18) Match Review & Chelsea vs Brighton (U23) Preview

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Well, this match report is going to be painful to write. Chelsea decided to broadcast an U18 League game, something we haven’t seen them do in years, so many fans were excited to see some future stars play. But it was a day to completely forget for the Blues, as they were thrashed 6-1 to their London rivals Spurs at Cobham.

The lineup certainly was interesting. Ed Brand made 8 changes to the team, something you can’t really blame him for, as it’s not like recent weeks have been good for him either. Jude Soonsup-Bell and Harvey Vale were not involved and we expect them to feature in the 23’s tomorrow, while Bryan Fiabema and Dion Rankine dropped down from the PL2 squad. Ben Elliot, Charlie Wiggett and Bashir Humphreys were the main names missing from today’s squad.

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Image Source: Chelsea FC

It wasn’t a great start, as Chelsea managed to concede inside 6 minutes. Tottenham worked it well down the left hand side, and the overlapping player crossed it into the far post for Lusala to tuck it into the corner, while no Chelsea player picked him up. A few minutes later we tried to bounce back as Fiabema had a shot on the edge of the box, but skied it way over the bar, which pretty much sums up his last few months in Blue as he has struggled to find the back of the net and is clearly lacking confidence.

Not long later Chelsea found themselves 2-0 down, after 2006 born goalkeeper Ted Curd gave the ball to Brodi Hughes under pressure. The defender, who actually had quite a good game, was fouled in his box but somehow the referee didn’t give a free kick, and Spurs ended up having a very simple tap-in converted by Scarlett.

Chelsea still had chances after a lovely backheel from Fiabema, but Joe Haigh was unable to find the back of the net and somehow Silko Thomas couldn’t score from a few yards out after some wonderful defending from the Lilywhites. Around the 20th minute, Spurs had complete control of the game, and former blue Roshaun Mathurin scored a wonderful free kick just on the edge of our own box to make the scoreline 3-0.

Charlie Webster, a player Chelsea fans should definitely keep an eye on, looked the most comfortable on the ball in the first half for the Blues, as on a couple of occasions he played some lovely lofted balls to Brooking and Rankine, but both were unable to make anything out of their chances.

Charlie Webster with a lovely few passes (Image Source: Getty Images)

Before Charlie’s ball to Rankine, around the 30th minute mark Josh Tobin lost the ball in an extremely dangerous area and the opposition had a 2v1, but Brodi Hughes made an outstanding tackle and stopped the scoreline from being 4-0.

Not for long though, as straight after half time when you’d hope to see some more fight from the Chelsea team, Tobin gave away a sloppy penalty and they made it 4-0. Now, I’m not going to lie, I went to go and get a drink of water after that goal, and I come back and see the scoreline to be 5-0. So, I don’t know how we conceded, but I know we did in a few minutes and the team completely collapsed.

Ed Brand decided to bring on Leo Castledine and Ronnie Stutter, with the former changing the game. He brought energy and quality in midfield, as he picked out a nice pass to Rankine who cut back to Joe Haigh who finished calmly to give Chelsea a consolidation goal. A few minutes later once again Leo put in a beauty of a cross, but Joe was unable to get contact with the ball.

Around the 75th minute, Castledine got fouled but once again it wasn’t given, the ball was easily turned over and Mathurin scored a screamer of a goal to get his hat-trick, flicking the ball over two players and finishing sweetly. The game died down from then onwards and it was a very disappointing morning for the Blues.

The last few weeks haven’t been easy for the academy, as most of the time the 23s and 18s have played the better football but haven’t been able to grind out the results, but today was just embarrassing. When the 23s played Spurs a few months ago we found ourselves 2-0 down, yet we still showed character and desire and managed to make a remarkable comeback and won the game in what was one of the best victories in the PL2 this season. Whereas today, there was absolutely nothing effort wise from most of the boys, and you wouldn’t think it was a London Derby.

No doubt, they will come back. After all the Chelsea academy is one of the best in the world, and it’s these tough spells which will separate the players with the strong mentality from the players with the weak mentality. But we need to see more effort and desire, and then we all know the quality these guys have. If Tino Anjorin and Billy Gilmour are to play with the 23’s even more, we could see the likes of Soonsup-Bell and Harvey Vale feature more for the 18s, hopefully giving them a helping hand through this tough situation.

Bryan Fiabema has struggled in the past few months for Chelsea (Image Source: Getty Images)

Chelsea U23s face Brighton tomorrow, and they also will be looking to get back to getting 3 points, something which we haven’t seen in a long while. They have played some incredible football at times, but struggled to find the back of the net.

Jude not playing today suggests he’ll feature tomorrow, which certainly will help as Fiabema and Nunn have struggled up top. Henry Lawrence should be set for a return after a few weeks out injured, as his cousin revealed to us in an exclusive interview all about Henry. Whether Billy and big Tino will be involved is something to keep an eye out on, as they certainly did make a difference in our draw to Leicester the other week.

Predicted Lineup: Ziger, Lawrence, Simeu, Colwill, Sterling, Bate, McEachran, Livramento, Ballo, Soonsup-Bell, Vale.

Written by Paree

Deals to look out for in the next 36 hours…

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It’s almost time for some of the most exciting and frustrating hours in world football – transfer deadline day. Chelsea are normally heavily involved, with the likes of David Luiz, Ashley Cole and Fernando Torres all previously joining us on the last day of a two month long window.

This time though, it seems as if Chelsea have done their business early. Hakim Ziyech was brought in as early as February, with Timo Werner joining us only a few months later, who was then followed by Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz, Thiago Silva, Edouard Mendy and Malang Saar. 7 signings – you’d think that’s Chelsea’s transfer window done.

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What a window so far… and there’s still more to come!

Wrong. Well, at least that’s what it seems like. There is a lot of business to be done with outgoings and trimming our squad down, and there also seems to be a chance that we could still bring in a defensive midfielder. All I’ll recommend is having Sky Sports News on for the next day, because it’s going to get thrilling. In this article, I’ll talk about the likelihood and my opinion of possible incomings and departures…. let’s get started!

Callum Hudson-Odoi

Hudson-Odoi is a player who gets linked away every single window. This time though, it’s quite serious. Rumours started to rise after being the only fit natural winger against Brighton and Liverpool, yet finding himself on the bench. Frank Lampard is adamant on wanting to keep Callum at the club, and he also wants to stay. However, it’s the board which wouldn’t mind him leaving, as although they rejected a loan bid with an option to buy for £70m from Bayern Munich, it has been heavily reported that Chelsea could accept an important bid if there was an obligation to buy, which probably should worry Chelsea fans and it brings up many questions as to why the club are even thinking of selling one of the brightest talents the academy has ever produced. If I was to give my own opinion, I really can’t see this complicated deal happening as it would need time and that’s not available. Frank wants to keep him. He loves the club and wants to stay. So surely he remains a blue?

Ruben Loftus-Cheek

It’s definitely a very interesting situation with Loftus-Cheek, and I’m at the point where I cannot stop feeling disappointed with how his career has gone. On his day, at full fitness, he is genuinely in my opinion the best player at this club. But, his 13 month injury was another one added to the list, and every day we just pray he can get back to full fitness quickly. Under Lampard will he be able to get to full fitness? Probably not. His appearance against Brighton was certainly underwhelming, and since then hasn’t been involved in any of the Chelsea matchday squads, suggesting his departure on loan is coming. Out of nowhere, Ross Barkley went on loan to Aston Villa, meaning Chelsea have had to rethink about what to do with Ruben. On current form, he has Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Mount and Havertz all as options in front of him in midfield, and he couldn’t even get a minute in the Carabao Cup. As much as it pains to type, he needs to play at the age of 24 and he simply won’t get that at Chelsea. Whether he can finalise a loan move to another club is anothing thing, but there is a lot of interest in the England international and keep an eye on whether the club can send him out on loan despite his high wages…

Chelsea's stance on Ruben Loftus-Cheek transfer after Ross Barkley's Aston Villa loan - football.london
Barkley’s departure on loan to Aston Villa means that Loftus-Cheek could stay after all…

Marcos Alonso & Emerson

I’m writing these two players in one, as for me only one of them is going to depart in this transfer window, with it likely being the Spaniard. Marcos Alonso’s return to Inter always seemed an option after simply not being good enough in a fullback role, and him leaving the club looks even more likely after his row with Frank Lampard after the game against West Brom, where he decided to watch the second half in the team bus instead of supporting the team from the sidelines. Emerson meanwhile almost looked guaranteed to leave to an Italian club, but when played this season, he actually looked impressive, whether that was at left-back or even at right-wing! The possiblity of both of them leaving is low as although Azpilicueta can easily cover both sides, Frank would feel much more comfortable with two fullbacks on each side of the pitch. Personally, a deadline day loan deal for Marcos to Inter will be done, although it’s important to keep an eye on the Brazilian’s situation too.

Tiemoue Bakayoko & Danny Drinkwater

Again, I put these two players together, not because it’s either one though, but more to show how easy it is for clubs to waste money. Bakayoko and Drinkwater cost us just under the price of Ziyech and Werner combined – put that into perspective. The Chelsea Spot had actually heard that there was a chance Bakayoko could stay at Chelsea if we desperately needed him, although a move did always seem the most likely option. For months and months he had been linked with top clubs including AC Milan, Napoli, PSG and more. And it looks like he’s finalising his deal to Naples in the next few hours… good luck to him!

Regarding one of our worst signings in history, I actually have no idea what’s going on with him. While writing this, I’ve also just remembered about Victor Moses who I think is still here! I’m guessing both are doing fitness work at the club, but I haven’t read a single report of either player leaving. We probably should try and get them off our wages and out of Cobham.

Antonio Rudiger

I mean, you have to feel bad for the German international, right? #AgentRudi was heavily involved in bringing Havertz and Werner to the best club in London, and then two months later is being completely isolated from the squad and Lampard’s plans. For me there is no doubt he is our worst centre-half at the club, but he does bring something to the dressing room and is also a great character, so I’m sure we will miss his presence more than his footballing abilites. Rudiger has not played a single minute so far for Frank this season, and his first choice is a move to Spurs, yet Chelsea are only going to let him move to our rival clubs if he signs a contract extension here before moving on loan. Napoli and Barcelona have also shown previous interest in the defender, but he’s a player who will almost guaranteed be leaving, so keep an eye on him.

Jorginho, Declan Rice & Thomas Partey

I’ve put all these three midfielders together because any involvement from any client will all be related to at least one other person in this list. Jorginho was incredible against Crystal Palace yesterday, but despite that performance I think his Chelsea career could be in danger soon, with Lampard wanting a more traditinonal 6 to protect the back four like a Declan Rice, or a 6 who can play next to Kante like a Thomas Partey, allowing Havertz to play as a 10 in front of them. Jorginho has heavy interest from Arsenal and Arteta is very interested in taking him on loan to join his fellow ex teammates in David Luiz and Willian, but Chelsea will still be slightly reluctact to be helping out a rival team. I think the plan for him is he will stay this window unless we sign a CDM in the next day, which Lampard still does want. The options at the moment seem to be either Rice, or Partey. Rice wants to join Chelsea, Chelsea desperately want Rice, and The Chelsea Spot understand that the deal is quite likely to happen one day, whether that is now or in the future transfer windows. But at the moment it seems like West Ham are holding their ground and refusing to sell him. Could anything change in the last 24 hours? Of course, and I’d be very surprised if a Chelsea bid didn’t go in to unsettle the West Ham board, but whether it can be done in 36 hours is the main hurdle. With Thomas Partey the deal would be much quicker as he has a release clause of £45 million, and he’s a player who Chelsea have scouted for quite some time now. All in all, if we’re going to sign one more player, it’ll be Partey or Rice, which will probably result in Jorginho leaving. All to watch for….

Sarr, McEachran & Castillo

The final three players to discuss, and they’re in the same paragraph as you most likely forgot about them! Sarr somehow isn’t on loan by now, after he had many discussions with Bayer Leverkusen and also Rennes where Chelsea used his as compensation for the Havertz and Mendy deals respectively. With only a day to go, nothing much has happened, and he does need to get his game-time as that was the whole reason we signed him on a free deal, in hope that he can develop and become a top quality centre-half in the future. He really should be going on loan soon.

George McEachran needs to experience first team football after being in the youth team for too long in my opinion, and even if that means he has to go to a low English league and work his way up, so be it. The technical midfielder struggled last season on loan in the Dutch second division, and he’s at the age where he needs to just get gametime and kick on with his career, as he certainly does have the potential in his boots.

Juan Castillo was at Ajax Jong last season and was set to sign for them this Summer, yet there were drastic last minute changes and he has found himself back in the Chelsea setup this season. It’s likely he’ll still move on loan again this season to get some more gametime, and who knows, could push into that Chelsea first team and challenge with Ian Maatsen.

I think I’ve covered all the players now…. if you want to find out updates on these players and how their moves are progressing, simply follow us on all our social media platforms!

Are there any players think have a higher/lower chance of leaving than what I said? Just let me know on my personal Twitter platform.

Written by Paree

Lewis Bate – the Sidcup Seedorf

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Since the restart of football following the coronavirus break, a number of players from Chelsea’s academy have been training with the senior squad, including Tino Anjorin, Armando Broja, and Henry Lawrence among others. Another was 17-year-old midfielder Lewis Bate, who, despite only being a first-year scholar, turned out to be the only one to make the bench for a first-team game, against Sheffield United. Tino Anjorin would have been likely to be named on the bench at some point, had he not sustained a season-ending injury in training shortly after Chelsea’s first Premier League game back against Aston Villa. He did travel with the senior squad to Villa Park, but he wasn’t named in the matchday squad. This, and injuries to Billy Gilmour, N’golo Kanté and Mateo Kovačić opened the door for Bate to be named as a substitute at Sheffield United and also to travel with the squad to multiple other games. His season ended at Wembley with the senior squad for the FA Cup final – a great end to a great season for the youngster, as it was put by @chelseayouth on Twitter. So, what is it that has made this season so great for him?

Bate’s rise to being named on the first-team bench at Sheffield United this season has been nothing short of remarkable. It was only in October 2019, at the beginning of this season, that Bate was signing his first professional contract with Chelsea on turning seventeen years old. Before that, though, he had already caught the eye playing for England’s Under-18 side and made his Chelsea Under-18 debut in August 2018. Last season, he played fairly regularly up an age group for Chelsea’s Under-18 side as a 16-year-old ‘schoolboy’, and was also named Player of the Tournament as Chelsea captain at the Premier League Under-16 International Tournament. The Sidcup-born teenager was also the only Chelsea player to be selected in England’s squad for the Under-17 European Championships in April 2019.

Bate signing his first professional contract for Chelsea at age 17. Credit: @lewbate on Twitter

Despite showing so much promise at such a tender age, few would have expected Bate to be working so closely with the senior squad this early. He started the season off with the Under-18 squad in a midfield pairing with Xavier Simons that worked wonders in Ed Brand’s 3-4-2-1 until around February, when both capitalised on the promotion of Billy Gilmour to Chelsea’s first-team squad and the departures of Clinton Mola (permanent, to VfB Stuttgart), and George McEachran (loan, to SC Cambuur) to make multiple impressive appearances for Chelsea’s Under-23 side in the Premier League 2.

Bate also played in four of Chelsea’s UEFA Youth League group stage matches, as well as being one of the stand-out performers in this year’s FA Youth Cup campaign, in which a semi-final against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge and a potential final away at Blackburn Rovers or Manchester City still remain to be played.

It is extremely impressive how at home Bate looked in Under-23 football when called upon this season, playing against players sometimes as much as three or four years older than him. He has been said to have impressed in training with the first-team squad as well. So, what kind of a player is he, and what are the attributes that have enabled him to appear so accomplished at so many different levels?

Bate taking part in training with Timo Werner and N’golo Kanté. Credit: @lewbate on Twitter

Bate is a diminutive but combative central midfielder with a sweet left foot. Equally comfortable as a number six, number eight, or in a double pivot, he does his shift out of possession, but it’s his work on the ball which really stands out. If I were to pick out three of his best qualities, they would be his Kovačić-esque dribbling ability to get out of tight spaces, his Gilmour-esque wide range and composed execution of passes, and his Kanté-esque tenacity and stamina. It is that mixture of game intelligence, ingenuity with the ball at his feet, and a feisty willingness to get stuck in, no matter against whom, that earned him my comparison with the great Clarence Seedorf.

Whenever you look at him, Bate is always scanning the pitch. He knows where everyone is at all times and loves to get on the ball and turn quickly with his first touch, before spraying it wide or driving it between the lines. One of his favourite moves is to entice an opposition player in, before playing a one-two with a teammate or using his quick feet to bypass the press and drive into the space vacated.

Bate is also a great leader, demonstrated by his successful captaincy of the Chelsea Under-16 side and other age groups throughout his time at Cobham. Even when not captain, he is always urging his teammates on and likes to encourage by example as well, and tends to still perform well in games where his team may not be quite at it. A good example of this was in the FA Youth Cup quarter-final 1-0 victory over Millwall at Stamford Bridge, when the 17-year-old was one of the best players on the pitch.

If I had to pick one weakness of Bate’s game that needs to be worked on, it is that he sometimes gets caught in possession when dwelling on the ball for too long. This is natural considering the position and role that he plays, but it happens a bit too often than he would like.

Bate taking on Millwall’s defence in the FA Youth Cup quarter final at Stamford Bridge. Credit: @lewbate on Twitter

Bate was unlucky in that had Chelsea been 3-0 up, rather than 3-0 down, against Sheffield United, he would have been likely to have been brought on for his Chelsea first-team debut. Instead, it is quite probable that Bate will make his debut against Bayern Munich in a few days, a game in which there is only pride to be played for. Hopefully he will produce a decent display, but, against one of the best sides in world football, the most important thing for a young player is to learn from the experience.

With luck, we will see the Sidcup Seedorf lining up with Billy Gilmour and co for Chelsea in years to come. Until then, he will continue to do his thing wherever he plays, whether that be for a Chelsea academy side, on loan somewhere, or for the Chelsea first team.

Chelsea 2-1 Aston Villa: The Blues complete quickfire comback

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After being 1-0 down at Half-Time, Chelsea fought back in the second half with two quick goals to gain three points.

Chelsea’s first game since the halt in the season was against Aston Villa, and the other results in the Premier League gave us a huge chance to increase the gap. Arsenal and Sheffield United lost, while Manchester United and Spurs drew against each other, with Leicester City also only picking up one point.

Chelsea’s fixture list certainly is not the nicest, with the Blues still having to play the likes of Liverpool, Wolves and Sheffield, meaning that we had to take all three points today.

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IMAGE SOURCE: CHELSEA FC

At 3.15pm the lineup was announced, and there certainly were mixed reactions all over social media. Fans were absolutely delighted to see Loftus-Cheek start in what was his first game in over a year, yet the sighting of Pulisic, Giroud, Gilmour and James certainly surprised many supporters.

We also had been hearing that Lampard was trying a new tactic with the 4-3-3 with N’Golo Kante as the holding midfielder, and today’s lineup certainly suggested he would be the deepest of all three, with Mateo Kovacic and Mason Mount either side of him.

The first half begun, with everyone in the stadium taking a knee down as part of the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the Premier League. As expected, Chelsea dominated the ball and at a point had 77% possession, but were still unable to put the ball in the back of the net after Aston Villa defended incredibly deep as a block.

Chances were being created, with Mount striking a ball brilliantly from the edge of the box with his left foot forcing a great save, as well as putting in an outstanding ball after a beautiful skill which on another day Loftus-Cheek would have scored. Crosses were being spammed into the box by Willian and Azpilicueta in the first half, but the forwards couldn’t get their toes on it or they ended up in Row Z.

Kante was enjoying himself in the new tactic, pinging the ball left right and centre, while Kovacic wasn’t able to get that involved in the game. Here’s where the statement ‘typical Chelsea’ comes in play.

Just before half-time, one set piece for Aston Villa, they cross it in, goal. Kepa made a solid save, but was left picking the ball up from the back of the net after there was not a single Chelsea player to react from the initial save, while Hause was left with a simple tap-in. The whole mood was destroyed and the Blues’ domination came to a waste, however even at half-time, there was always that hope that Chelsea could get back into the game, something which we rarely see.

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Chelsea came out in the second half, with no changes, with some even questioning the in game management. Lampard gave another 10 minutes to Loftus-Cheek and Kovacic, yet both were unable to make any difference in the beginning of the second 45 minutes and were swiftly brought off for Pulisic and Barkley respectfully.

Loftus-Cheek was always going to have a rough game, and Lampard has said this game was more about his ‘physicality.’ Getting 55 minutes without any problems or injuries is definitely one of the huge positives from today. Kovacic wasn’t able to show enough quality which we know he has, and has always struggled playing in the box to box role next to Kante, which is something which perhaps could be looked into later.

The two substitutions changed the game. They brought a bit of flair, pace and movement, which completely threw off the structured Aston Villa team. 5 minutes later, Pulisic scored with his left foot on the half volley after a wonderful cross from Azpilicueta, and from then on the game really was in Chelsea’s hand.

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Two minutes after our first goal, the ball fell nicely to Giroud who turned and shot with his weak foot, with it ending up in the back of the net via a deflection. From that moment on, Chelsea just had to make sure to defend their lead and always looked comfortable.

Chelsea were back to controlling the ball, and there were a few heart attacks on the way with Rudiger and Christensen having huge lapses of concentration, but Villa were never really a threat in front of goal otherwise. A few mistakes from Reece James almost cost us in the end, but the ball was cleared and the ref blew his final whistle.

Like everyone said before, it doesn’t matter how Chelsea were going to get the three points, it just mattered that we did. And Lampard’s squad delivered.

Kepa showed glimpses of the 72 million value, Azpilicueta got two assists while Alonso disappointed, Christensen looked solid in the first half but then followed Rudiger in having idiotic moments.

Kante’s new role certainly impressed many fans, with Mount being my own Man of the Match after some incredible pressing and work in the #8 role.

Willian also showed a few bright moments, Loftus-Cheek gained fitness, Giroud scored a goal and the American impressed once again from the bench. Lampard’s in game management is not to be missed either, who got the second half spot on.

Who was your Man of the Match? Let us know on our social media platforms.

Written by Paree