Sandwiched in between this week’s marquee double-header against Manchester United in the Champions League is the first leg of another significant knockout tie against the Red Devils. On Sunday lunchtime, Stamford Bridge will host the first leg of this year’s FA Youth Cup Semi Final, as Chelsea seek to defend the crown they won eleven months ago. Standing in their way are as tough an opponent as the young Blues…
This issue of The Loan Report takes a quick look at the weekend action amongst Chelsea’s young loanees, as clubs returned to domestic action after a fortnight of international jaunts. It was a case of maintaining the status quo in the Premier League, with Daniel Sturridge impressing whilst Gael Kakuta and Michael Mancienne saw no playing time. Sturridge had an excellent first half against Birmingham City for Bolton Wanderers, and…
With the last fortnight seeing the football calendar largely taken over by international commitments, the latest instalment of The Loan Report will also catch up on how Chelsea’s youngsters have been doing on their travels. Starting at home, the international break meant no action in the Premier League and The Championship, but there was selected activity in Leagues One and Two. Conor Clifford was an unused substitute for Notts County…
Chelsea’s Reserve team extended their unbeaten run to six matches and completed a hat-trick of consecutive wins over North-West opposition with a hard-fought 1-0 win at Wigan Athletic on Monday afternoon. A first half goal from Billy Clifford ensured all three points would be heading back down south as the Blues moved into second place in the South Group, and are in with an outstanding chance of this season’s title….
Chelsea appear set to add another highly-rated teenager to their ranks this week, as a deal for 15 year-old Czech forward Dominik Mašek is believed to be close. The FK Příbram forward spent a week on trial with the club earlier this season and a move reportedly worth upwards of £1m is said to be close. Mašek’s club confirmed that he and a younger player both spent some time training…
Fabio Borini this week became the nineteenth Chelsea player to go out on loan this season, and wasted little time in making an impact. We start this week’s loan report with the Italian’s impressive debut. Borini, who has spent the season with the reserve team due to a contract dispute, linked up with former reserve team boss Brendan Rodgers at promotion-chasing Swansea. He was thrust straight into action on Saturday…
Breaking news in Brazil this evening suggests that long-term youth target Lucas Piazon has agreed to join Chelsea from Sao Paulo when he turns 18, for a reported fee of €7.5m. The website “Lance!net” initially reported that the teenager, currently playing for Brazil in the South American Under-17 Championships, will join the Blues ahead of competition such as Juventus, who were believed to have agreed a deal to sign him…
With no Premier League action, and a handful of injuries, it’s been a quieter week than we’ve seen recently on the loan front, but there’s still plenty to talk about in the latest instalment of The Loan Report. It has been an FA Cup weekend, meaning a free date for Premier League action, and as such neither Gael Kakuta nor the injured Michael Mancienne were able to play. Bolton did…
Chelsea’s Under-18 team extended their unbeaten run at Cobham to five games on Saturday morning with a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Birmingham City. Mesca’s first-half goal, his maiden goal for the Blues, was cancelled out in the second half and ensured that the visitors took a deserved share of the spoils. Having made his long-awaited comeback from injury for the reserves in midweek, Marko Mitrovic started a match for the…
From week to week, the number of Chelsea loanees who receive considerable playing time can fluctuate. Over the last few years, Blues supporters will be familiar with the stories of the likes of Scott Sinclair and Ben Sahar, who couldn’t buy a place in the starting elevens of teams they spent a short spell with. It therefore comes as good news that this week, a considerable majority of those available…