Loftus-Cheek impressed for Chelsea against Vidi FC. (Photo Credit: Getty Images/Shaun Brooks)
Chelsea are one of the favourites for Europa League glory, but Sarri mustn’t neglect youth
by Dylan Walsh
As Emile Smite-Rowe slotted in Arsenal’s second goal of the evening and Matteo Guendouzi added the Gunners third in a comfortable 3-0 win for Unai Emery’s side, Chelsea fans could only sit and wonder ‘Why can’t Maurizio Sarri give more opportunities to our youth?’
As the team news stepped out at Stamford Bridge, it became clear that Sarri had yet again opted to field a fairly strong starting XI, with only three players in the team under the age of 23 and only one a graduate of the Chelsea academy.The same Chelsea academy that has won the FA Youth Cup a staggering nine times in the last 10 years and a Chelsea academy that currently has nine players under the age of 23 out on loan across various clubs around Europe.
The Blues should be the leading club in England producing home-grown talent and starting games, like today, with kids trained from the academy and players who can relate to the fans in the stands. Except, we saw none of that. And the worst part is that it isn’t even surprising.
An all too familiar tale
Since the Russian takeover of Chelsea, the West London side have been known for two things; ruthlessly sacking managers, and not playing the kids. 15 years later we are still linking these two crimes of football to the club. But it doesn’t have to be the case for the latter of these two stereotypes.
It’s easy for Chelsea to spend big on ready-made players to fix easy problems in the squad, but what this does is eliminate opportunities for youth players to gain valuable first team minutes for one of the biggest sides in the country.
Exhibit A: Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Loftus-Cheek is a prime example of this philosophy that has now been embedded at the club. The 22-year-old midfielder was praised as the next big thing to come out of the Chelsea academy since John Terry. Managers and fans sang about his ability and physical presence, but now a mature player for his age group and an established Premier League player, Loftus-Cheek remains merely a fringe player at the Blues.
Even tonight after impressing after an hour of football against a sturdy and impressive Vidi side, Loftus-Cheek was withdrawn from the game in place for fellow countryman Ross Barkley.
A stagnating problem
Chelsea have one of the best squads in this years Europa League, with many predicting Sarri can lead the Blues to their third European trophy this decade should his players continue to produce positive results in the tournament. But the Italian manager should not only see the Europa League as an opportunity to win his first major trophy as a manager, but as avenue for young players to finally gain some minutes in the first-team.
The likes of Ethan Ampadu and Callum Hudson-Odoi, the former already a full international with Wales despite not making a single start for Chelsea this season, are both players that are not only ready to compete against Europa League-level opponents, but are ready to show Chelsea fans that youth is still an important factor at the club that has the potential to fuel an entire generation of talent in the future.
