FUTURE LUKS GRIM FOR CHELSEA KIDS
Blues back to big-spending days under Tuchel
THE SIGNS that the big-spending days are back at Chelsea were there for all to see last summer.
The narrow window of opportunity that Frank Lampard creaked open for their youngsters was rapidly shutting with a decent outlay in the market.
This year, the youngsters’ fears have only been confirmed, as Chelsea have gone all out to strengthen their squad with massive bids for European football’s biggest names, such as Erling Haaland, Romelu Lukaku and even Robert Lewandowski.
After all, Thomas Tuchel did not cross the Channel just to run an academy. He came to coach the best players and win the biggest trophies.
Having put the European Cup on the table already, how can Roman Abramovich deny him now?
Some of Chelsea’s kids have already taken the hint. Lewis Bate, Myles Peart-Harris, Dynel Simeu and Tino Livramento all decided not to sign new deals, and joined new teams for nominal fees.
Other promising Cobham academy graduates, Fikayo Tomori and Marc Guehi had already been sold this summer, to AC Milan and Crystal Palace respectively. Palace snapped up another in midfielder Conor Gallagher on a year’s loan, and Billy Gilmour moved to Norwich on the same terms.
In addition, England striker Tammy Abraham is available to whoever can match Chelsea’s £40million valuation, with Arsenal and West Ham interested. And fellow graduates Callum HudsonOdoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek are also on offer to the right bidder.
Admittedly, Lampard had little choice but to use the kids when the former Blues and England midfielder took over in 2019, with the club in the middle of a transfer embargo.
Nevertheless, Lampard gave Abraham, Mason Mount, Reece James, Hudson-Odoi, Tomori and others significant runs in his team, and established the first three as regulars and eventually England players.
As soon as the transfer ban ended last summer, though, the Abramovich cheque book was out again, as more than £220m was splashed on Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy.
Under Tuchel, that trend is clearly continuing, with the German intent on bringing in Sevilla defender Jules Kounde to boost his Champions-League winning squad in what is likely to be a £60m deal – plus a striker.
For Tuchel , Abraham at least appears not to figure in his plans, with Hudson-Odoi seemingly facing a battle. For Loftus-Cheek, last year loaned to Fulham, the same fate awaits.
Once again, the path is crowded for the Cobham hopefuls.As an exodus of home-grown talent in one summer it has been almost unprecedented for a club not in financial trouble. But the situation seems to have signalled to more than one hopeful that their future lies elsewhere. For Livramento and Simeu it is Southampton, for Bate Leeds, and for Peart-Harris Brentford.
The exodus has shown the quality of the Chelsea academy in producing such sought-after players, but it is a lot of talent out of the door.
Chelsea also appear to be ready to let Kurt Zouma go in a bid to clear the decks defensively for Kounde’s arrival. The Frenchman was offered to Sevilla as part of the deal, but has signalled he does not want to go to Spain. West Ham is the centre-back’s preferred destination if he has to go – but a £25m price tag is a stumbling block.
Chelsea, since Abramovich’s arrival, have famously never been slow to flash the cash – more than £2billion has been spent on players since 2003.
There was a moment when the spending slowed. Now it is back.