The Loan Report returns from the international break with more goals for you to enjoy and, as usual, it’s Vitesse Arnhem leading the way.
Headliners
The Gelderlanders are now the Eredivisie’s leading goalscorers after they racked up five for the second consecutive outing. PEC Zwolle –a handy team in their own right – were the unfortunate victims of the latest hammering, going down 5-1 at home to a Vitesse side without the services of manager Peter Bosz due to a two-match touchline ban.
Jon Dahl Tomasson took charge in his stead and he watched his two starting Chelsea loanees find the back of the net in the opening stages. Lewis Baker scored direct from a free kick to notch his third in black and yellow before Dominic Solanke joined him on that tally by converting a penalty. Baker had previously been on spot kick duty, scoring twice before hitting the crossbar with a failed attempt, and it appears that for the time being at least he’s off them as Denys Oliynyk also put one away later in the game.
Nathan and Danilo Pantic saw time off the bench in the second half whilst Izzy Brown was absent through injury once again. The victory sets things up nicely for a tussle with Ajax next weekend; a Vitesse win would put them within two points of the league summit.
Baker and Solanke weren’t the only goalscorers this weekend, nor were they the only ones scoring for the third time this season. Mario Pašalić notched for the first time in Ligue Une after two Champions League efforts; his first-half header for Monaco at home to Lyon earned a lead his team held onto for a long time only to cede late on, eventually drawing 1-1.
A quick reminder also that whilst Mohamed Salah scored for Roma this weekend, he is no longer a Chelsea player and will not be featuring in the Loan Report from now on. For more information on Roma’s activation of a clause allowing them to turn his loan into a permanent stay, read this.
England
Victor Moses laid on an assist for Carl Jenkinson to score the first of three West Ham goals in a win at Crystal Palace. Patrick Bamford wasn’t involved for the hosts with manager Alan Pardew admitting that it’s not been easy for the prolific young forward to work his way into the team so far and opportunities to do so between now and the new year might not be as forthcoming as Chelsea would like.
If things do pan out that way then the Blues will almost certain seek alternative arrangements but, things can change very quickly in football, and Dwight Gayle’s first-half red card bumps Bamford up the reckoning for one week at least.
Nathan Aké played the full match at left-back for Watford against Arsenal but looked a little overmatched in all honesty, arguably contributing in some fashion to all three of the visitors’ goals. He helped play Mesut Ozil onside for the opener (and would have likely been sent off for a foul had Alexis Sanchez not scored anyway), left the German open at the far post to assist Olivier Giroud for the second, and was easily beaten by Hector Bellerin en route to Aaron Ramsey completing the scoring.
It’s good to see Aké getting opportunities to play but he’s never truly convinced as a left-back – arguably his third-favourite position – and will want to bounce back with a more resolute showing next time out.
Christian Atsu wasn’t involved for Bournemouth at Manchester City (quelle surprise…) and Marco van Ginkel’s Stoke take on Swansea on Monday night. Keep an eye on @chelseayouth for updates there.
In The Championship, Reading maintained their challenge at the top of the table with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Charlton Athletic. Michael Hector was impressive at centre-back for the Royals whilst Lucas Piazon had a productive afternoon in attack, registering the assist for Nick Blackman’s winning goal. The Brazilian has become increasingly involved of late and should now be looking to build upon that by asserting himself as a key figure in their promotion push.
Tomas Kalas, linked with a permanent departure to Besiktas this week, played ninety minutes at right-back for Middlesbrough against Fulham, whilst John Swift logged just shy of eighty for Brentford against former club Rotherham.
Jordan Houghton was an unused substitute for Gillingham; Alex Davey wasn’t in Peterborough’s matchday squad.
Germany
Andreas Christensen and Borussia Mönchengladbach continue to bounce back in some style after an emphatic 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt this season. His return to the team has coincided with a well-overdue change in fortunes since Lucien Favre’s resignation and the young defender is playing well in his own right too.
France
Jeremie Boga was an unused substitute for Rennes against Nice.
Italy
Wallace made a rare appearance for Carpi on Sunday, coming on as a 73rd-minute substitute as the minnows lost 3-0 at Atalanta. Stipe Perica also saw roughly a quarter of an hour for Udinese away to Verona, but Nathaniel Chalobah couldn’t get off the bench as Napoli beat Fiorentina.
Juan Cuadrado had a lively outing again for Juventus in a 0-0 Derby d’Italia draw away to Inter.
Netherlands
Todd Kane played 81 minutes for NEC Nijmegen in a narrow 1-0 defeat away to FC Twente.
Belgium
All three Chelsea youngsters at Sint-Truiden were involved in their unfortunate 3-0 defeat to Mechelen on Saturday. Victorien Angban, who was called up by the Ivory Coast’s senior national team last week, played the full match in midfield, and he was joined in the starting line-up by left-sided Chilean Cristian Cuevas. Cuevas was replaced midway through the second half by Joao Rodriguez but it was an evening to forget for a team that has otherwise surprised many observers this season already.
Cristian Manea was an unused substitute for Mouscron again.
Turkey
Kasimpasa beat Sivasspor on Sunday with Nigerian defender Kenneth Omeruo – who celebrated his 22nd birthday this weekend – still out with injury. Marko Marin and Trabzonspor are in action on Monday and you can keep up with his involvement as well as Van Ginkel’s for Stoke on Twitter @chelseayouth.
Scotland
Islam Feruz made his return from injury as a late second-half substitute for Hibernian on Saturday and will now hopefully be able to forge onwards with a productive spell north of the border.
Portugal
Vitória Setúbal beat Coruchense in cup action without feeling the need to call upon the services of Uli Dávila.
Bosnia-Herzegovina
One of the more concerning loanwatch stories over the international break came with the news that Matej Delač suffered a potentially serious knee injury whilst playing for FK Sarajevo in a friendly contested in atrociously wet conditions. Initial fears that the goalkeeper had suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament were allayed by reports that, for the time being at least, he will not undergo surgery, but he is back at base at Cobham receiving treatment and will be sidelined for a while either way.