“I came to Europe to play for Chelsea, so if one day they want me there, I would be very happy.”
Occasionally, a young player springs up at Chelsea who is sure to make it for your club. Lucas Piazon was seen by many as someone who could. To break the worrying trend the club had developed of never giving academy players a chance.
Piazon did not grow up training and playing with his teammates at Cobham. Instead, the Blues paid a hefty fee to Sao Paulo for the then 17-year-old Brazilian, beating out the likes of Juventus. He arrived at the club in early 2011 but had to wait a whole year before being deemed eligible to play for the senior team.
2011/12 was a memorable year for Chelsea, more so than most. The season started turbulently but culminated in the senior side winning the UEFA Champions League and the FA Cup. Meanwhile, the club’s youth team replicated the latter success – winning the FA Youth Cup – with Piazon playing a key role. The Brazilian was declared the Blues “Young Player of the Year” for the campaign.
The early promise shown by Piazon intensified when he scored against Paris Saint Germain during Chelsea’s tour of the United States in summer 2012. He featured heavily in friendly matches, a sign many fans took to assume his involvement in the upcoming season. Those assumptions turned into confidence when Roberto Di Matteo named him in Chelsea’s Champions League squad for the 2012/13 campaign, dropping club great Florent Malouda in the process.
That same campaign was the closest Piazon came to breaking into the first team. He started twice in the EFL Cup – against Wolves and Manchester United – before making his Premier League bow against Aston Villa. The game will always be remembered by his bright cameo, during which he assisted Ramires, won a penalty, took it and saw it saved by Brad Guzan.
Piazon had talent, time, accolades, and the backing of the club; where did it all go wrong then? It started in 2013 with a loan to Malaga.
What Went Wrong?
Piazon’s failure to break through for Chelsea can be summed up by lack of stability – both at the club and in his professional career. Andre Villas-Boas spoke highly of him, Di Matteo trusted him enough to include him in the Champions League squad, and Rafael Benitez gave him his Premier League debut. Yet, when the youngster returned to the club in summer 2013 from Malaga, none of the three managers was there. Instead, the club had brought back Jose Mourinho.
The Portuguese’s return to Stamford Bridge was significant. He had developed a reputation for winning trophies and breaking the pre-existing status quo – something he had already accomplished once in England. It was a statement sent out to the football world by the club and the owner, Roman Abramovich. They wanted to win again, win consistently, and win at all costs – no matter the collateral damage.
In retrospect, bigger players than Piazon turned up in the collateral damage column, the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah, Romelu Lukaku, and Juan Mata. However, the loss was difficult to comprehend amid the buzz of title celebrations.
Not willing to give up on Piazon yet, or perhaps not finding an appropriate buyer, Chelsea drafted him into what came to be known as the ‘loan army’ – a collection of players hoping to get another chance to play for the club yet recognizing that that chance may never arrive.
For Piazon, one loan after another followed, For Chelsea, one manager after another. The chance for stability, for both the player and the club, kept diminishing as each year passed.
Nonetheless, a lack of opportunities was not something Piazon had to worry about. He went to seven different clubs on loan and played over a hundred matches. He showed promise but never enough. He produced numbers but never enough. However, one has to understand that moving across the continent, year after year, and at such a young age can have a big effect mentally. As such, it is not difficult to sympathize with the Brazilian.
One must also remember that Chelsea was a different place back then. While the club has recently bucked the trend of overlooking their young players, that wasn’t the case previously. The ‘win at all cost’ mantra had a significant cost, often in the form of a youngster’s hopes and dreams. We cannot be certain that Piazon would have even got an opportunity to play for the first team, had he been playing at his best.
What we know for certain is that the door closed for Piazon in 2013 and it never opened again.
Where Is He Now?
After a decade of being attached to the club and amid the drone of him being the longest contracted player remaining at Chelsea, Piazon left for Braga in 2021. The Brazilian was already in Portugal on his seventh loan at Rio Ave, when he closed the Blue chapter of his book for good.
His parting words were less than kind, acknowledging the business-like nature of the club (via Goal).
"In the beginning, I felt like Chelsea really wanted me and really wanted me to do well and come back. But after the third or fourth loan, I knew it was just maybe business. [It was] like ‘you go into the world and someone will buy you and you will be happy about it – you’re not going to play here anymore."
However, for those of us still hoping that he makes a good career for himself, there is some good news. As it turns out, stability was all Piazon needed to let his talent shine through. The security of a four-year contract and the trust of his new manager, Carlos Carvalhal, has helped as well.
Piazon has already played twelve times for the club – seven in the league – often as the right-winger. He has scored five times so far for Braga, with one of his goals coming in the Taca de Portugal semi-final against FC Porto. In his short time at the club, he already has a chance of lifting silverware when Braga faces Benfica on May 23.
Blues’ fans, over the years, hoped for the now 27-year-old to be given a chance with the first team – even during an unexpected short return to Stamford Bridge under Maurizio Sarri. Knowing that he is excelling at the sport that he loves, playing for a side that wants him, provides closure – the kind which is difficult to explain.