The ten best young Chelsea players aged 22 and under.
10. Tomas Kalas – Age: 20
The Czech defender is one of the longer serving young Chelsea stars currently on loan with Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem and if his current rate of progression continues then the club won’t have to look very far for a replacement to John Terry when he finally hangs up his boots.
Signed for a princely sum of £5.2m, he is just as highly valued in his homeland as he is at Stamford Bridge and has already earned a call up to the Czech national side when he came on as a late substitute in the friendly against Slovakia last month.
9. Marco Van Ginkel, Age: 21
A Vitesse player so good Chelsea wanted to bring him in instead of sending him there. Having made over 100 appearances in the Eredivise he has recently began to make his way into the Dutch national team and has picked up two caps already.
Despite only featuring four times for the Blues so far this season, his versatility in a time of crisis will likely stand him in good stead to clock up a few more as the season goes on.
8. Oriol Romeu, Age: 22
Chelsea picked up the classy young Spaniard from Barcelona in 2011 when it became clear that he would face a long wait to break into the starting XI there and enjoyed an impressive debut season in West London that saw him clock up 24 appearances across all competitions.
However, this season Jose Mourinho saw fit to loan him to Valencia and now faces a fight to get the player back as Los Che have been so impressed that they want to keep him for themselves.
7. Lucas Piazon, Age: 19
A player must be good when they’re dubbed the ‘new Kaka’ and the young Brazilian certainly has the potential to be a huge star in the future. More direct on the ball than most of his compatriots, he can pass, shoot, is an expert from dead ball situations and has an eye for flair too.
Made his debut last season, he was loaned out to Malaga before joining the rest of the Chelsea exiles in Arnhem. Will surely become a popular figure at Stamford Bridge over the coming years.
6. Nathaniel Chalobah, Age: 18
There aren’t many players that can take a league as tough as the Championship by storm at just 17 years of age, but the England under-21 international managed to do just that last term when he helped an impressive Watford side to the brink of promotion to the Premier League.
well known for his versatility, work-rate, and fitness levels, both in defending and attacking sense, he has joined Nottingham Forest to help them with their own promotion push. Will be absolutely vital for club and country one day.
5. Christian Atsu, Age: 21
The Ghanian starlet is already an established star for his country despite only breaking into the Porto side last season. And a fine campaign he enjoyed there too, helping the club to a league and cup double.
Another player that has made his way over to Vitesse, many questioned his choice in joining Chelsea, but should he continue his rapid rate of development then he will be a star in no time.
4. Thorgan Hazard, Age: 20
It is often difficult to play in line with a sibling, but where so many have gone before, such as the Nevilles and the Militos, the Hazards look set to continue this fine lineage of footballing brotherhoods.
Currently on loan back in his home country with Zulte Waregem, he has been making waves both domestically and in the Europa League. The prospect of both him and Edin on either wing is one that should have Chelsea fans rubbing their hands together in maniacal glee.
3. Oscar, Age: 22
The young Brazilian international has already made his mark upon the first team since joining from Internacional in 2011, wracking up close to 100 appearances in all competitions and bagging 18 goals in the process. It’s fair to say he’s already made it at Chelsea.
However, at just 22 he is still learning the game, but en excellent start and regular fist team action will only ensure that he fulfils his potential and writes his name into the ever growing book of club legends before they inevitably have to fend off eventual interest from Real Madrid.
2. Thibaut Courtois, Age: 21
The Belgian made his debut for hometown team Genk aged just 16, and it didn’t take Chelsea much convincing to snap him up just two years and 41 appearances later.
He is now enjoying his third successive loan spell in Spain with Atletico Madrid, where he has established himself as the undisputed number one between the sticks. Seen as an eventual replacement for Petr Cech, the club may find holding onto him a difficult task as he has far outgrown the role of an understudy.
1. Romelu Lukaku, Age: 20
Lukaku must be wondering what he has to do to be given a fair crack of the whip at Stamford Bridge. An early flood of goals for Anderlecht made the club pounce on him before anyone else was given the chance and then a more than impressive 17 goals for West Bromwich Albion only furthered his claim for a starting role.
However, Moutinoh felt it was too soon and sent him out to Everton where he has already managed to hit eight goals in 10 games. If he keeps on scoring at that rate he will get his chance soon enough.
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