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Loan Round-Up. Who should be retained?


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Loan Review  

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  1. 1. Who has been the best player out on loan?

    • Thibaut Courtois
    • Kevin de Bruyne
    • Romelu Lukaku
    • Nathaniel Chalobah
    • Other
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Chelsea FC had an astonishing TWENTY-FIVE players out on loan during the 2012-13 season and several of them had stellar seasons with their respective teams. Nathaniel Chalobah fired Zola's Watford to the Championship play-off final, Lucas Piazon got a taste of Champions League football at Malaga, Romelu Lukaku scored 17 league goals for West Brom while Thibaut Courtois won the Copa del Rey with Atletico Madrid with an impressive performance in the final last weekend. So, as the season is ending, who do you think can stake a claim in the Chelsea first team in the near future?

First-team Candidates

1. Kevin de Bruyne: The little Belgian christened "Prince Harry" upon his arrival at Chelsea had a brilliant season on loan at German side Werder Bremen. Although Bremen struggled for consistency, de Bruyne was one of the stars in their team and in my eyes, he was easily one of the best player in the Bundesliga outside the 2 big teams – Bayern and Dortmund.

He has been ever-present in the Werder side making 33 appearances in the Bundesliga. He was used in a variety of positions during the season most often, lining up in a central position alongside Zltako Junuzovic – a defensive midfielder.

He sees passes that others don't and he shows an ambition in his passing that only Mata can match at Chelsea. The picture below, although outdated now, shows the comparison of de Bruyne with our current midfielders upto March.

AhrqDIl.jpg

Firstly, don't read too much into that because of the difference in the pace, style of play at Werder and Chelsea but one statistic stands out for me – his crossing accuracy. That is a big improvement from our current players even when taking into account the different challenges they face. de Bruyne’s ability to pick out a long pass or a through ball to unlock the defence highlights his playmaking ability. His pass-completion rate (76.2%) is something he needs to work on but do keep in mind that he's played on the wings at times this season.

I think de Bruyne is ready for first-team football at the top level. Yes, he will have competition but he's shown his versatility at Werder and will definitely offer better depth for the Attacking Midfield position than Marko Marin

2. Romelu Lukaku – Another Belgian who’s had a storming season in the Premier League under former Blue Steve Clarke at West Bromwich Albion. Lukaku started the season with heavy competition for the Striker position at WBA with Shane Long, Peter Odemwingie and Markus Rosenborg in the club’s books. But it didn’t take long for the Belgian to ease into the side and by the end of the season, Lukaku’s stock had risen significantly enough to warrant a nomination in the Young Player of the Year category.

Lukaku’s power and workrate were already good as Chelsea caught a glimpse of him in pre-season but his first touch and ball-control left a lot to be desired. Thankfully, those are aspects of the game that can be worked on and Lukaku has done just that in his season on loan. He is definitely ready to challenge for the Striker’s role at Chelsea even if the board decides to get another striker.

Promising Prospects

3. Tomas Kalas – The Czech Republic young player of the year had another solid season helping Vitesse to a respectable 4th place in the Eredivise. He had a dip in form around Christmas and looked a bit jaded in some games but recovered towards the end of the season. The move to shift him to Right Back was strange given how well he had performed at CB.

Either way, I would like to see him given an aggressive loan for next season. Hopefully the news that Steve Clarke wants to take him to the Hawthornes pans out because i. West Brom have a shortage of defenders and ii. Steve Clarke will be a good influence

4. Patrick van Aanholt – The best season of his career till date. Patrick van Aanholt bossed the left flank for Vitesse, defending well and bombing forward with intent. I will say he is a better athlete than current Chelsea backup Left-Back Ryan Bertrand but not necessarily a better defender.

With Ashley Cole staying on for another year, another loan should see PvA develop into a credible challenger for the Left-Back spot.

5. Nathaniel Chalobah – Another youngster who has shined this season. Chalobah has been an important member of Watford’s promotion push this season. Chalobah has slotted into the rigours of the Championship effortlessly. His athleticism and mobility have helped and as the season has progressed, he has started getting forward often to help in attack.

I think he’s the best midfield prospect we’ve got but now that Frank has signed an extension and with another midfielder imminent, Chalobah would benefit from another loan to a Premier League side

6. Josh McEachran – While not in the level of Nathaniel, Josh McEachran has quietly gone about this season to improve aspects of his game. Middlesbrough fans have hailed him for his ability to spot a pass and execute it and by all accounts, he had a good season up until Christmas after which Boro went into freefall.

He was played on the flanks especially early in the season but the physical side of his game is not cut out for it. This season is certainly an improvement on last season after the disappointing Swansea loan but McEachran is still some way of making it at Chelsea. Another loan please, maybe Boro again or a Premier League team that will assure a first-team role

7. Thorgan Hazard – The after-thought in the Eden Hazard transfer saga, brother Thorgan has had a great season with Zulte Waregem in the Belgian League propelling them to 2nd place and Champions League qualifying spot. He is clearly more than good enough for the Belgian League but to trust him at Chelsea now will be a big leap of faith. A more aggressive loan, Vitesse perhaps.

8. Thibaut Courtois – Cech is in the way. A 3rd season at Madrid beckons

9. Kenneth Omeruo - Started the season at Right-Back but was then increasingly used at CB especially after his excellent performances in the African Cup of Nations. There are reports of Kenneth being included for the pre-season tour to Asia but another loan is on the cards.

Deadwood

1. Michael Essien – Age has caught up with Michael Essien and although he’s been okay at Real Madrid, his best performances have come at Right-Back rather than central midfield. Time to cut our losses with him

2. Sam Hutchinson – Injuries have crippled him all career and he is just there to add to the numbers at Chelsea.

3. Jeffrey Bruma – Hamburg have declined the option of keeping Jeffrey Bruma and that speaks volumes of his current situation. Sell him while we can

4. Gael Kakuta - Enjoyed possibly his best season to date but with the Mata, Oscar and de Bruyne, he simply doesn't have a way through

credit:whoscored.com

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These voting poll's should allow you to have multiple votes as for me KDB and Lukaku have been equally as good out on loan!

Also Courtois, obviously can't compare him to KdB and Lukaku when he's a goalkeeper but he's done extremely well too. Won Atletico Madrid their first Copa del Rey in who knows how long, against local rivals Real Madrid of all teams, and was also voted as the best goalkeeper in the league this season.

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Michael Essien – Age has caught up with Michael Essien and although he’s been okay at Real Madrid, his best performances have come at Right-Back rather than central midfield. Time to cut our losses with him

Sam Hutchinson – Injuries have crippled him all career and he is just there to add to the numbers at Chelsea.

Just too sad... :(

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Also Courtois, obviously can't compare him to KdB and Lukaku when he's a goalkeeper but he's done extremely well too. Won Atletico Madrid their first Copa del Rey in who knows how long, against local rivals Real Madrid of all teams, and was also voted as the best goalkeeper in the league this season.

Yes, how could I forget the season Courtois just had with Atheltico. He has been incredible for them and his loan spell has been equally as progressive as Kevin and Lukaku's.

The decision on who to bring back for the 12/13 season isn't going to be easy for Mourinho. Leaving Courtois at Athleti for another season is probably the easier of the three seeing as Cech has another big season or two left in him, I think only one more season though. The choice to bring back Kevin should be a given in my opinion and Lukaku has proven that he can cut it in the Prem but this will all depend on the board decide to buy in the summer transfer window. With Cavani looking very likely to join City at the moment and Falcao chasing paper, It will be very interesting to see who our main striker will be next season. Having said that, whoever that striker be I really think Lukaku should be called back to fight for his place. Not only will this keep Lukaku hungry but it will keep the main striker on his toe's too. Everyone is crying out loud for Kevin to be called home after the showcasing of his huge potential in the Bundesliga this season. He is the perfect fit for our squad and would add the obvious depth not only to the holding midfielder role but the wing's also. The squad's depth was exposed this season and De Bruyne was what the team was missing. Like I said though, the choice on who Mourinho will call back all depend's on who the Club decide to buy and offload in the transfer window. If Schurrle and a big name striker comes in and Torres stay's then maybe Lukaku and KDB will be left out on loan for yet another season which I feel would be a major mistake.

Chalobah look's excellent but he is not ready for first team football at Chelsea just yet. Another season out on loan in the Prem could benefit his development tenfold.

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@Mufassir, Are you convinced about Kalas? Or do you think he will add depth to the defence?

I would recall him mainly for the depth in defence.He has had two very good years in holland and he would provide quality back-up for both RB and CB positions.Azpi cant play every game and brana is our starting CB so a versatile defender like kalas would be very useful.

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For me Lukaku and KDB have been excellent an would fit nicely into our first team set up. Definitely would both get a lot of gametime if no one else was added, but our best loanee would have to be courtois considering he is probably in the top 5/10 keepers in the world and its only because we have one of the top 3 keepers in the world already that he isn't starting for us right now. And you cannot say the same about Lukaku, who needed the time on loan, and KDB who i think has definitely benefited from a spell on loan.

As for who we bring back it is totally dependant on who we bring in. With the exception of nathanial who for me needs one more season in the top flight. If watford make it with zola him staying there would be ideal. As for lukaku, if we are to bring in a (falcao/lewy/cav) type striker then he should probably go back on loan for one more season just to get another season of first team football under his belt. KDB imo should come back becuase we need him as we have seen this team without hazard and especially mata and its not the same. He maybe wouldn't be first 11 straight away, but he would still get plenty of game time, as it will be another long season, next year. Courtois should stay on loan for another season as cech is still good enough, but perhaps in a year Courtois may be taking the reigns.

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As for lukaku, if we are to bring in a (falcao/lewy/cav) type striker then he should probably go back on loan for one more season just to get another season of first team football under his belt.

Why not keep him around even if we sign a striker? Chelsea have a very thin strike-force and as United have repeatedly proven over the years, a good strike-force will hide a lot of problems in the team. Lukaku will get good game-time even if we sign a top striker, whether it be as an impact substitute or backup striker. To me, he is ahead of Ba and Torres in the pecking order

Ideal attack options next season - Lewandowski - Lukaku - Ba - Torres Schurrle

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the thread is good, the voting is bad. need to have a multiple option thing.

anyways lukaku and KDB for me for the next season. we gave lukaku a chance to prove himself in PL, and what a way to do that. now he deserves a fair oppurtunity at chelsea under the best manager in the world. seriously cant see it going bad.

as for KDB, he too needs to be given a place in the squad. with just MAZACAR and moses for the front 3, we were found wanting this seasom. need some1 with quality to relieve the pressure off these guys. and kdb seems just the person to do that.

also our management need to take a decision on CECH. he is without a doubt still world class but i dont know how many more seasons we can simply keep loaning courtouis out to other teams.

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Thread should be renamed as "who's been the best player out in loan?" as the poll asks.

 

I wanted to put up a poll of who should be retained with multiple options but then there were too many options. since, this question pertains to the past, there is a group of 4-5 players who have been a cut above the rest. if someone would change the topic title, i wouldn't mind. it is basically about this season anyway

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Would definitely recall KdB, Lukaku.

Not sure about Kalas...probably add him as depth for next season..cause Azpi needs a bit of a rest...and Terry's age is beginning to show.

The player I'm most intrigued about is Van Aanholt....do we keep him OR do we sell him?

I'd love to see Kakuta at Chelsea...rather than Marin...but for the sake of his future, he should be sold.

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