Chelsea spent much of the summer pursuing a litany of superstar defenders. Chelsea’s failure to sign any mega-deals for Kalidou Koulibaly, John Stones or others may be the best thing for Chelsea’s youth prospects.
Chelsea’s youth players have watched cautiously as the Blues spent the last few months playing cat-and-mouse with Napoli, Everton and several other clubs over the purchase of high-value fullbacks. For every move Chelsea actually made, no fewer than five baseless rumours appeared.
The only thing all those negotiations – real or imagined – have in common is that Chelsea failed in all of them. Though incredibly frustrating to see Chelsea repeatedly and summarily rejected, these uninterested clubs may have done Chelsea a great favor.
The next few seasons will determine whether Chelsea’s youth policy truly is the total shambles it appears to be. Chelsea’s youth teams have been the most successful in England by a country mile over the last few seasons. Despite their domestic and foreign success, none of the players have broken through to the Premier League.
With Antonio Conte at the helm, the feeling around Stamford Bridge is that these youth players finally stand a chance at making it into Chelsea’s first-team.
The academy’s defenders standout even among their peers at Cobham. The closer Chelsea gets to the end of the transfer window without a major signing, the better the chances that the next academy-to-first-team player will fully follow in John Terry’s center-back footsteps.
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Aside from the excellent Kurt Zouma, Chelsea have two of the most highly rated defensive prospects ever at the center-back position.
Jake Clarke-Salter and Andreas Christensen could be a platform for Chelsea to move forward with for years to come. At 18 and 20 years old, respectively, the two are still precariously young. Few players at this age can play at a sustained level for the length of a Premier League season. On the other hand, both Clarke-Salter and Christensen are frequently compared to all-time greats of the position. If they are even ¾ as good as people say, they can keep Chelsea rolling in the silverware for years to come.
Andreas Christensen is on the second and final year of a loan with Borussia Monchengladbach in Germany, where he draws comparisons to Franz Beckenbauer. Denmark’s national team coach Age Hareide said, “He reminds me of Franz Beckenbauer… he’s really relaxed and elegant. It almost looks like he could be playing in a suit.” (FourFourTwo).
Meanwhile, the ever-modest John Terry says Jake Clarke-Salter reminds him of himself. Others see more of another England great in Clarke-Salter. Telegraph reporter Richard Amofa think it is Rio Ferdinand that Clarke-Salter is most likely to grow into.
Chelsea are likely moving towards a 3-5-2 under Antonio Conte. With Zouma eventually healthy and at the center of the back-line, Chelsea could do a lot worse than placing him between Jake Clarke-Salter and Andreas Christensen. That defense could – and this is a cautious comparison – be the best Chelsea have ever had.
The pure talent and mix of defensive skills is too unbelievable not to raise hopes. Just think of the players they are being compared to. Kurt Zouma is often compared to Marcel Dessaily (though Lillian Thuram may be more apt). Jake Clarke-Salter is the next Rio Ferdinand and Andreas Christensen harkens to Franz Beckenbauer. If this trio even gets close to reaching those levels, Chelsea will be golden for 10-15 years.
Spending another season watching the current Chelsea back line kill themselves will be masochistic, but with a purpose. It may be the necessary price of keeping the talent pipeline open for Zouma, Clarke-Salter and Christensen.
Christensen returns next season and he will step straight into the side. Zouma will spend the majority of this year working his way back to full health, but by next season he should be back to perfect. Finally, Jake Clarke-Salter will ascend to Chelsea’s first team and complete the dream defensives triumvirate.
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Over time, these three may become a better defence than the one Conte coached at Juventus. Chelsea’s chase for Kalidou Koulibaly and others for gross sums of money may capture headlines and address short-term issues. But Chelsea’s best interest may be to simply “hold fast.” Chelsea’s youth development pipeline holds a more complete and promising package than anything the club could ever hope to buy – and it won’t cost one additional pound.