Youth & Reserves

Chelsea’s Under-18s overcame a shaky first half display to run out emphatic 4-1 winners over Southampton at Cobham on Saturday morning. The Blues were uncharacteristically sloppy in the opening 45 minutes and deservedly found themselves trailing to Michael Obafemi’s goal, but with their long unbeaten home record in peril, they responded well after the restart and, inspired by schoolboy Callum Hudson-Odoi, they were able to seal a comprehensive victory to…

The final international break of 2016 has given us a fortnight without academy action at Chelsea and, therefore, provided us with a useful opportunity to reflect upon the first three months of the campaign so far. It’s been an interesting one on several levels; one which has seen the Development squad enter senior adult competition for the first time, whilst both they and the Under-18s have found it tough sledding…

For a dead-rubber in a much-maligned competition, that wasn’t bad. Chelsea’s Checkatrade Trophy campaign came to an end on Tuesday evening with what should have been an unremarkable home date against League One promotion hopefuls Oxford United but, in front of a Stamford Bridge crowd of more than 6,000, the two teams played out a 13-12, seventeen-round penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw. The Blues deservedly prevailed to give themselves…

Chelsea’s Under-18s recorded their first away win of the season on Friday night as they beat Brighton 3-1 at a chilly Lancing training ground. A stunning opener from Martell Taylor-Crossdale, his eleventh of the campaign, set the Blues on their way, and although Dan Cashman equalised shortly before half time, the visitors emerged with all three points courtesy of further strikes by Richard Nartey and Callum Hudson-Odoi. Coming into the…

Chelsea’s Development Squad earned a deserved share of the spoils in their trip north to face title contenders Everton as Dujon Sterling’s early goal set them on their way to a 1-1 draw at the Merseyrail Community Stadium. The Blues included both Marco van Ginkel and Kurt Zouma in their starting eleven – the Dutchman joining the French defender in mounting a returning from a long-term lay-off – and were…

Chelsea’s search for an Under-23 victory will go on for at least another week after they shared a 2-2 draw at home to Derby County on Monday evening at Aldershot in a fixture headlined by Kurt Zouma’s first match action since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in February. He was at the centre of attention in the first half, conceding a penalty from which Callum Guy eventually scored after the…