After watching Chelsea’s remarkable comeback to claim their 3rd FA Youth Cup in five seasons, one could only imagine when will these talented youngsters get a chance in the first team.
Since Roman Abramovich took over, Chelsea have spent a vast amount of money in creating one of the finest academies in England.
However, Chelsea have failed to integrate their youth players to the first team since John Terry made his debut in 1998.
Despite winning the Champions League medal with Chelsea, Ryan Bertrand struggled to make an impact in the first team.
Chelsea’s inability to mould them to the first team isn’t solely the manager’s fault. The pressure of bringing instant success have played a major role in that.
But with FFP kicking in, teams are forced to select players from their Academy. Unlike previous seasons, Mourinho is given time to build for the future and the time is right to select some of the talented youngsters from the youth team.
One player in particular is Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Standing at 6ft 4in, Ruben has the same height as Nemanja Matic. The 18-year-old captain is one of the most promising players from the lot.
His dominating possession play is outstanding. Ruben is very calm on the ball and has a great vision in finding players around him. His great physique makes it difficult to dispossess him as well.
The youngster is a talented box to box midfielder who likes to go forward and get involved in the attacking play. Its not only his offensive display that makes him standout, his defensive contribution is also impressive.
There is no doubt that Chelsea still needs the experience of Frank Lampard and John Terry, but its time for Ruben to step in and if given the opportunity he will make his mark on the first team.
