Guus Hiddink praises Chelsea FC youngsters, confirms more opportunities
Following a victory in which several squad players were given a chance, Guus Hiddink praised the Chelsea FC youngsters for their performances.
With Chelsea FC’s season dead and buried, it was largely expected that interim boss Guus Hiddink would bleed some of the younger players into the first team. This was confirmed earlier this afternoon as the Dutchman deployed a much-changed side for their Premier League clash with Aston Villa.
Matt Miazga was handed his full debut in the centre of defence, while Baba Rahman, Kenedy and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were also in the starting line-up. Alexandre Pato came on shortly after the opening whistle to replace an injured Loic Remy and academy prospect Jake Clarke-Salter was brought on in the second half for both of their senior debuts.
In the end, it was an extremely comfortable 4-0 victory over an incredibly woeful Aston Villa side. Nevertheless, Hiddink gave the youngsters credit for their performances and indicated that they will see more game time as we reach the end of the campaign.
"It’s good to see Loftus-Cheek, Clarke-Salter and Miazga coming in. We cannot win anything, which makes it easier. It’s good to see how they deal with the pressure. I always like to bring in youngsters and now we have the rest of the season to do it more frequently. – via chelseafc.com"
More from The Pride of London
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea player ratings: Abysmal, reckless, wasteful
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea: 3 Blues talking points
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 1 Blue Mauricio Pochettino should drop
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 3 Blues who must start
- Predicted Chelsea lineup vs Bournemouth: Palmer starts in 4-2-3-1
It was certainly a relief to see the starting eleven for this afternoon’s clash. After weeks, even months, of urging Blues management to use the younger talent, the wishes of the supporters were fulfilled. They were then justified as Chelsea rolled over the hapless Villa outfit to the tune of four goals.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek hit the back of the net, opening the scoring in the contest. He put in a fantastic performance overall as well. The same could be said about Matt Miazga, who became the first American to feature for Chelsea in the Premier League.
Jake Clarke-Salter was an interesting inclusion on the bench and an even more interesting substitution. The 18-year-old was presumably drafted in as defensive cover, but Hiddink decided to bring him on in a refreshing managerial move.
While the overriding sentiment is still one of anger towards the players for a horrific campaign, allowing some of these younger and innocent prospects increased minutes will do much to cultivate a positive atmosphere heading into the summer.
Next: Chelsea FC player ratings after Aston Villa thrashing
A huge clearout is expected in the transfer window, but it will be this new generation of players who will be charged with taking the club forward. At least everyone is going to get a chance to evaluate their potential before they are chucked straight into the cauldron in August.