Chelsea what ifs: Kylian Mbappe’s trial becomes a contract
By Travis Tyler
Kylian Mbappe trialed for Chelsea many years ago before deciding on Monaco. What if he had opted to stay with the Blues to develop?
21 year old Kylian Mbappe has the world at his feet. Since winning the league with Monaco, he has only gone on to show the world his immense talent. His transfer to Paris Saint Germain is mind boggling in its fee but it is seemingly worth every penny.
Once upon a time, Mbappe was going around Europe trailing with teams. He eventually landed on Monaco because he believed it would offer him the best chance at first team football.
But what if, in 2012, Mbappe had signed with Chelsea after all? How different would his career have been? How different would Chelsea be?
One of the first things Chelsea would do with him is look to improve his defense. Yes really. Chelsea wanted to see more of him off the ball which was one of the reasons they hesitated over him. So his initial years in the academy would see a focus towards that.
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In real life, Mbappe made his debut in the 2015/2016 season as a 16 year old. Given how Chelsea’s actual 2015/2016 season went, that debut could have come at roughly the same time not unlike Tammy Abraham or Bertrand Traore that year.
Like the latter, Chelsea would probably have trained Mbappe for the wing and the striker spot, a development that came much later in his actual career. And, like Traore, Mbappe would have been loaned out the following season as Antonio Conte arrived.
Mbappe’s real life breakthrough season came in 2016/2017, but on loan from Chelsea it is not as glamorous. He does great at Vitesse, but it is Vitesse. He goes out again in 2017/2018 to the Championship where he smashes record after record in front of him, but Maurizio Sarri is unmoved by the player in 2018/2019. Chelsea loan the player to Frank Lampard’s Derby County.
Frank Lampard turns Mbappe into a totally different player. He moves him back up top and brings out the best in the Frenchman. Derby County still face a playoff battle, but this time they come out ahead and are promoted. Lampard still joins Chelsea that following summer, though the decision is much more drawn out.
With Abraham and Mbappe at his disposal, Lampard steps away from his 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 and goes with a 4-4-2 shape that, at times, almost looks like a lopsided 4-3-3 of Carlo Ancelotti lore. Mbappe is not a world star in this reality, but he looks the real deal at 21 having finally gotten a shot at the Premier League.
Chelsea is flying high in third, nipping on Manchester City’s heels, when the season comes to a halt. The world waits out the pandemic as they look forward to a future of Mbappe and Abraham combining for goal after goal.
And of course, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and especially Paris Saint Germain are throwing around potential transfer figures around £100 million.
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