Chelsea FC To Rest Players, Start Youth Against Sporting
May 25, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; Chelsea Midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek takes a photo with a fan after being taken out of the game against the Manchester City during the first half at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Chelsea FC manager Jose Mourinho has mentioned he intends to rest some key players and rotate youth into the side to face Sporting Lisbon tomorrow in the UEFA Champions League. Given that the Blues have assured advancement into the next round and have a busy fixture list over the holiday season, this makes sense. A bit of a very nice surprise, though, comes from his assertion that the Blues will utilize some key figures from the Chelsea FC youth teams, including budding star midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who will be making his debut with the first team.
"To be here since he was eight and to have the chance to play his first Chelsea game is every kid’s dream. He wasn’t one of the players to start the season with me but the way he is training every time he comes gives me a guarantee of his quality and ambitions.- Chelsea FC Manager Jose Mourinho"
Ruben Loftus-Cheek has been a staple of the Under-21 and Under-19 sides, and played against Sporting in a youth match last month, but Mourinho mentioned the stark differences between that match and what will happen for him tomorrow.
“One month ago he played in Lisbon, in the UEFA Youth League, so you can imagine the difference between playing at the Sporting academy in front of maybe 1000 fans and then one month later playing against Sporting in the real Champions League at Stamford Bridge, in front of 40,000 with the lights on him,”
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It’s excellent to see Chelsea management bringing youth players into the first team. John Terry is still the last Chelsea FC Academy product to make a career with the senior side. Many others have been touted as the next big thing, but the clubs stature on the worlds stage meant purchasing ready-made players to compete for Premier League and Champions League medals, with many young players being loaned out or sold to finance such deals. A SkySports article has stated that Mourinho intends to keep Loftus-Cheek on the first team squad for the final roster in January, meaning the player will be training with the senior side and available for selection in all matches.
Chelsea FC Team News
Diego Costa will start, but John Terry, Willian and Eden Hazard will not feature. Mourinho described them as being on holiday. Matic will probably return following his 1 game suspension for yellow card accumulation against Newcastle. Cesc Fabregas should start, given he will miss our match against Hull for the same reason. Everyone else is fit and healthy to go. I’m hoping to see Loftus-Cheek start alongside Fabregas in midfield, personally.
Chelsea FC Predicted Starting XI
————————–Courtois———————–
—Luis——-Cahill——-Ivanovic———Azpilicueta
————–Loftus-Cheek————Fabregas———
—–Schurrle————-Oscar———–Salah———
—————————-Costa————————–
Predicted Result
Despite starting a “weakened” lineup, I’m sure Chelsea can defeat Sporting given that the atmosphere on European nights at Stamford Bridge is almost always brilliant.
Up The Chels!