EskWeston

Robbie could decide to go without a recognised centre forward, like he did for the final part of yesterdays game. It all depends on how they see the fitness of the players. They will not run the risk of injury for any reason in pre season games. No matter what team goes out there though it is going to be a cracking game in the Yankee stadium...

It may be a big team, but the priority is to manage the players fitness. Those who played 60 minutes yesterday are unlikely to start this game.

Another deal that looks like it is done, probably wouldn't expect any official announcement, will probably just see him playing in the next U21's game. Like i said before, he may not be the best talent, but we need a bigger U21's squad for the coming season and it gives us the oppertunity to try and develop him more into a better player. From what i understand the raw talent is there in him.

It would seem that everyone knows that the deal is done, not sure why there is a holdup in announcing the deal. There is obviously a reason though. Hope it gets announced sooner rather than later.

Would expect an almost reversal of the teams for the seattle game. The players with less minutes against seattle to get more against PSG. Should be a tough game, but both teams at the same level of pre season.

This game was an excellent workout for the lads involved. Some really nice forward movement all through the game. Can never expect too much this early in pre season but this game was played at a very good tempo and will have done the players the world of good. Thought our weakest players were Benayoun who just could not get himself involved in the game enough and Ferreira who was constantly out of position and not tracking players. Everyone else did well. Thought Josh looked good despite the poor pass for their first goal. Marin and Hazard were really lively and i am looking forward to seeing more of that through the season. Lukaku looked good, strong and composed, better with his hold up play as the game went on. De Bruyne should excellent flashes but was trying a little too hard. Best young player of the game for me was Todd Kane when he came on, does what he does best, gets up and down that left flank and gets the ball in, even one trademark long drive at goal. Piazon looked class and composed when he came on too. All in all a very positive performance, PSG a much bigger hurdle in the next game though....

Yup, seems well done and dusted. Would expect the usual announcement on the 5pm Blues news...... A very exciting signing this one......

Surely though if we loan out Lukaku we have to sign another forward or we are too short? And then that is not helping Lukaku's cause at all as it is only another player in his way.....

Kakuta will not go on loan again. He has stated that he will either stay at CFC or leave the club for good.

With all the buzz of transfer activity around the club at the moment it is always easy forget that we have restrictions on what we are able to do with the squad under the Premier League homegrown rule. We have to work with a squad of 25 players plus an unlimited number of players under the age of 21. Of that 25 players 8 of them have to be homegrown. As things stand this is the squad we have under these guidelines: 1.(HG): John Terry 2.(HG): Ashley Cole 3.(HG): Frank Lampard 4.(HG): Ross Turnbull 5.(HG): Daniel Sturridge 6.(HG): Ryan Bertrand 7.(HG): Gary Cahill 8.(HG): Sam Hutchinson 9. Petr Cech 10. Branislav Ivanovic 11. Michael Essien 12. Mikel 13. Florent Malouda 14. Paulo Fereira 15. Hilario 16. Yossi Benayoun 17. Ramires 18. David Luiz 19. Fernando Torres 20. Oriol Romeu 21. Juan Mata 22. Kevin De Bruyne 23. Raul Meireles 24. Eden Hazard 25. Marko Marin Gael Kakuta U21 Players: 1. Romelu Lukaku 2. Lucas Piazon 3. Josh McEachran 4. Jamal Blackman 5. (Oscar) So as things stand we are right on our limit of the squad we can have, and if we want to use Gael Kakuta this year we need to make space for him, not to mention any further signings we could make. Although there are players who could easily (likely) still move on, Malouda or Benayoun for example.

With the changes that have been made with U21's and U18's football the club want to work with larger groups at both levels. So why not bring someone in with potential to work with that group and see how he can do.

Well this looks like it is going to happen then. I am always extremely happy to see us sign exciting young forwards with tons of ability. Cannot wait for this season to kick off...

Same as Eden, mainly a number 10 but can operate out wide...

Yup, i like the idea of a fluid 3 behind Torres and it would be an amazing 3 to have too, young and gifted.

Seems a talented young player. And we are in the habbit at the moment of bringing in family of players we have signed, Angban brothers playing for the U21's on Saturday as well as 2 of the 3 Musonda brothers with the other playing for the U18's....

Signing a striker will effectively mean we have completely given up on Lukaku and/or Sturridge. And i certainly don't think we should give up on either. Stick with Torres, Sturridge and Lukaku is what i would do.

A lot of the players are on different schedules of fitness. Some players (those at the euros) are not even with the squad yet. And others joined up later, like Lampard, Ramires and Luiz. The majority of the starting 11 will be players who had started pre season from the beginning and there will more than likely be a different team for each half. This will also be the game where we are most likely to see the youngsters play in.

As always it has been a busy week in the Chelsea FC Academy. Pre-season training has been well under way with a number of young players joining in with the first team training sessions due to the small squad while players are still coming back. The biggest news of the week involves a number of loan moves. Tomas Kalas and Patrick Van Aanholt have both gone back to our unofficial link up club Vitesse Arnhem. Both spent time there last season with different results. Tomas Kalas had a very successful loan and impressed everyone while Patrick Van Aanholt had mixed results during his time there. Both will be looking to have big seasons and come back to Chelsea next season to push for places in the first team squad. On top of that Tomas Kalas has signed a new contract with Chelsea which ties him to the club until 2017. Two more loan moves have also happened. Firstly U21’s player Rohan Ince has joined Yeovil Town on loan for 6 months. Rohan is a big strong lad who will find himself well able to cope with the football in League 1, injuries have hampered him development at Chelsea and I would imagine that this loan move will be with a view to find a club for him permanently at the end of the season when his current contract runs out. Also joining the ranks of players going on loan is Mexican attacking midfielder Ulises Davilla. Davilla is moving to the Spanish second division with CE Sabadell, he will be looking to play as many games as possible and acclimatise to European football and hopefully work his way back into the Mexican national team to make his work permit application go through. As always with Chelsea loanees we wish them all the best. The Chelsea first team are making their way to America now to take part in their pre-season tour and it would seem that a number of academy players have gone with them. Todd Kane, Lucas Piazon, George Saville, Patrick Bamford and Jamal Blackman all seem to be on the plane off the states. Due to the delayed nature of players returning to pre-season it is always an opportunity for young players to make a statement in the first game(s) of pre-season. Again we look forward to seeing what they can do out there. Nathaniel Chalobah was in England action at the U19’s Euros and made it to the semi final stage being beaten by Greece. Chalobah was played in an unfamiliar position of right back for most of the tournament and England will feel they could have done better but it all very good experience for the young Chelsea man. The football finally returns this weekend for the academy with the U18’s kicking things off with a game at Cobham against Torquay United, kick off at 12:00pm and then later in the day at 3:00pm the U21’s get their pre-season started with an away game at Northwood FC. Details of the games will be in next week’s review, hopefully both groups will get things off to a positive start. Click here to view the article

I agree, but there is a lot of media pressure already for the FA to do something. And the FA are great at bowing to media and public pressure.

Thank god this is over with. Amazing it got to court. What is worrying though is the number of people willing to accept something and argue that when they clearly have no idea of the facts. Too many people seem to believe it is a FACT that JT used those words to abuse AF, but still got off. No he got off because there is not a soul in the world who heard JT abuse AF with those words, and no-one to counter JT's version of events. Now we wait for the FA to bow to pressure as usual and probably give JT a ban.....

This game cannot come soon enough. Will be a pretty mixed team for this first game with mainly the players who have been involved since the beginning of pre season. A few youngsters will likely be involved, Piazon is confirmed as going and it looks like George Saville will also go along with some others.

Youngsters Tomas Kalas and Patrick van Aanholt have today completed their loan deals returning them to Dutch club Vitesse Arnhem for the duration of the 2012/13 campaign. Both players were temporarily with the Eredivisie side last term. Czech Under 21 international Kalas 19, made 29 league appearances over the course of the season, while Dutchman Van Aanholt, 21, scored once in nine games having also spent time with Wigan Athletic during late 2011. Before departing for Holland, Kalas also signed a contract extension with Chelsea committing him to the club until the summer of 2017. Source: Chelsea FC

Youngsters Tomas Kalas and Patrick van Aanholt have today completed their loan deals returning them to Dutch club Vitesse Arnhem for the duration of the 2012/13 campaign. Both players were temporarily with the Eredivisie side last term. Czech Under 21 international Kalas 19, made 29 league appearances over the course of the season, while Dutchman Van Aanholt, 21, scored once in nine games having also spent time with Wigan Athletic during late 2011. Before departing for Holland, Kalas also signed a contract extension with Chelsea committing him to the club until the summer of 2017. Source: Chelsea FC

Below is the U21's fixtures, results and highlights for the season 2012/2013. Also below is the goalscorers for the season: July 2012: Saturday 14th July 2012: v Northwood FC (A)(F) Draw 0 - 0 Sunday 22nd July 2012 v 1860 Munich (A)(F) Lost 2 - 3 Saturday 28th July 2012: v Northampton Town (A)(F) Won 2 - 0 August 2012: Saturday 4th August 2012: v St Albans (A)(F) Won 3 - 0 Saturday 11th August 2012: v Kingstonian (A)(F) Won 1 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/N8g7sc Tuesday 14th August 2012: v Dundalk (A)(F) Won 1 - 0 Friday 17th August 2012: v Manchester City (H) Draw 0 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/PurF7g September 2012: Saturday 1st September 2012: v Wolverhampton Wanderers (H) Won 5 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/UlzDRd Friday 7th September 2012: v Charlton Athletic (H)(F) Lost 2 - 3 Highlights: http://bit.ly/SBUyT6 Friday 14th September 2012: v Liverpool (H) Lost 1 - 4 Highlights: http://bit.ly/Uzhpgc Monday 24th September 2012: v Crystal Palace (A) Draw 2 - 2 Highlights: http://bit.ly/QOm3mS Friday 28th September 2012: v Middlesbrough (H) Lost 1 - 3 Highlights: http://bit.ly/POJu0i October 2012: Friday 5th October 2012: v Fulham (A) Lost 1 - 3 Highlights: http://bit.ly/WkDJLk Monday 22nd October 2012: v Wolverhampton Wanderers (A) Lost 2 - 3 Highlights: http://bitly.com/S1du8D November 2012: Sunday 4th November 2012: v Manchester City (A) Won 3 - 2 Highlights: http://bit.ly/TZhJoS Monday 12th November 2012: v Crystal Palace (H) Won 4 - 1 Highlights: http://bit.ly/QAh12t Sunday 18th November 2012: v Liverpool (A) Draw 3 - 3 Highlights: http://bit.ly/YaDd5b Monday 26th November 2012: v Fulham (H) Won 3 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/SvuhnE December 2012: Monday 3rd December 2012: v Middlesbrough (A) Won 3 - 2 Highlights: http://bit.ly/10O8M61 January 2013: Monday 7th January 2013: v Millwall (H)(F) Won 6 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/Ujarvp Thursday 10th January 2013: v Fulham (H) Won 2 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/TUTFE2 Friday 25th January 2013: v Middlesbrough (H) Won 3 - 2 Highlights: http://bit.ly/Y5wq8d February 2013: Monday 11th February 2013: v Blackburn Rovers (A) Lost 2 - 1 Highlights: http://bit.ly/XcrBxf March 2013: Friday 1st March 2013: v Fulham (A) Lost 1 - 0 Highlights http://bit.ly/ZqKv2g Sunday 10th March 2013: v Everton (H) Lost 1 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/11ILsFa Monday 18th March 2013: v Middlesbrough (A) Lost 2 - 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/177GfsQ April 2013: Thursday 4th April 2013: v Aston Villa (H) Lost 1 - 2 Monday 8th April 2013: v Sunderland (A) Won 1- 0 Highlights: http://bit.ly/12rPaEB Monday 15th April 2013: v Aston Villa (A) Draw 1 - 1 Highlights: http://bit.ly/ZvcaD1 Thursday 25th April 2013: v Everton (A) 7:00pm Monday 29th April 2013: v Blackburn Rovers (H) 1:00pm May 2013: Top Scorers: Islam Feruz = 7 Lewis Baker = 6 Patrick Bamford = 4 (2) Jeremie Boga = 3 Lucas Piazon = 2 George Saville = 2 (1) Billy Clifford = 2 (3) Connor Hunte = 2 Marko Marin = 2 Adam Coommbes = 1 (4) Nathan Ake = 1 (1) Todd Kane = 1 (1) Aziz Deen-Conteh = 1 Alex Davey = 1 Milan Lalkovic = 1 Alex Kiwomya = 0 (2) Ben Gordon = 0 (1) Adam Nditi = 0 (1) John Swift = 0 (1) *Goals in brackets indicates goals scored in friendly games Key: A = Game Played away from Home H = Game Played at Home F = Friendly Game Games Played = 21 Appearances: J.Blackman = 18, L.Baker = 16, G.Saville = 14, B.Clifford = 13, A.Davey = 12(4), N.Ake = 12(1), T.Kane = 12, A.Deen-Conteh = 11(2), I.Feruz = 10(1), P.Bamford = 10, A.Nditi = 9(3), M.Lalkovic = 9, A.Christensen = 8(2), R.Loftus-Cheek = 7(1), T.Musonda = 7(1), L.Musonda = 5(5), D.Pappoe = 5(3), D.Conroy = 5(1), L.Piazon = 5, J.Boga = 4(6), J.Swift = 4(4), C.Clifford = 4(1), R.Ince = 4(1), F.Dabo = 4(2), A.Kiwomya = 4, , I.Ssewankambo = 4, C.Hunte = 3(1), M.Marin = 3, M.Beeney = 2, S.Bangura = 1(3), A.Coombes = 1(2), A.Gnahore = 1(1), N.Chalobah = 1, S.Walker = 1, J.Terry = 1, K.Wright = 1, R.Mitchell = 0(4), J.Starkey = 0(3), T.Hazard = 0(1), J.Ashton = 0(1), I.Seremba = 0(1) *Figures in brackets indicates substitute appearances

This time of the year is always the time when the fates of young players are decided. Scholarships are signed, pro contracts are signed, players go on loan and some lucky players make the step up to the first team. The latter is what I want to focus on now. These are players which are normally older players who have served their time in the reserves and even probably on loan. It also includes some players brought in for the first team whose futures may lie elsewhere for this season. So let’s take a look at these players on the fringes of the first team: Romelu Lukaku Lukaku joined the club on the back of a lot of expectation. Dubbed the new Didier Drogba and being a Chelsea fan it was hoped he would show his ability and make us see we had the replacement for Drogba ready to step into his boots. That view was tinged though with the belief, particularly from manager Villas-Boas, that the club would have liked to have waited another year or so before signing him but circumstances forced our hand. As it were Lukaku made 4 starts for Chelsea in the 2011/12 season with 4 substitute appearances. He spent most of him playing time last season in the reserves with 9 appearances and 7 goals, a decent record but a standard of football lower than what he needed to progress. So what is the fate of Lukaku for the coming season? All through the summer there have been rumours of him going on loan for the 2012/13 season and specifically to a team in the Premier League. A number of clubs have been linked with him, the most recent being Premier League returnees West Ham United. That being said at Chelsea with Didier Drogba leaving it leaves us with Torres, Sturridge and Lukaku for the centre forward berth, whilst Lukaku would be 3rd choice here from the clubs point of view we would need him even if it does mean limited playing time for him. Of course there is still time for more players to come in, should for example Hulk join it would be another player able to player centre forward and may allow Lukaku the chance to get Premiership football elsewhere for this season. Kevin De Bruyne Similar to Lukaku De Bruyne is a player signed with his immediate Chelsea future unclear. It was the intention of boss Villas-Boas to allow De Bruyne to spend the coming season on loan. With the departure of Villas-Boas that plan has been put on review it would seem. Di Matteo has decided to take De Bruyne with him on the pre season tour of America and allow him to show what he is able to do. De Bruyne, even though a young player, has a lot of first team games under his belt having played 107 games for former club Genk including 11 games in European football. Being an attacking player who can operate on the wings or behind the striker there is certainly a spot for him if he can convince RDM that he is worth keeping around for the coming season. Although a loan would not be out of the question and he has been linked with Southampton already. Ryan Bertrand Having spent 143 games on loan at various clubs Bertrand finally had his breakthrough year at Chelsea in the 2011/12 season. The view now that he will definitely be understudy to Ashley Cole going forward and will be expected to make more appearances than the 14 he accumulated during the last season which included a start in the Champions League final where he had a very good game. There should be enough confidence in Bertrand now to be able to share more games with Ashley Cole who should be used more sparingly going forward. Sam Hutchinson Having made a truly remarkable return from retirement last season he managed to feature in 2 first team games and 10 reserve games. His physical level is still very unclear, and what he will be able to do going forward. Due to the nature of his injuries it is unlikely he will be loaned out to another club as the club will want to manage him. But can he make more appearance in the coming season? Being used mainly as a right back when used in the first team there is a place there that he can take advantage of but that all depends on what he can physically manage. Gael Kakuta This is really a make or break summer for Kakuta at Chelsea. He has made it clear that he will either stay with Chelsea this season or move on to another club permanently, there will not be another loan. A player with huge ability and promise but who has struggled with various injuries and wasted loan spells. Kakuta spent last season on loan at Dijon and put in some good performances making 14 appearances with 5 goals and 2 assists. At the age of 21 and with a good loan spell behind him it could be time for Kakuta to make his mark. Again with the 3 attacking midfield spots behind the striker very much up for grabs Kakuta could find himself getting those chances easier than before. As with every young player it is going to take the manager to trust him to make the step up. Pre season will be very important for Kakuta. Patrick Van Aanholt Another player who has made some first team appearances but indifferent loan spells. For Van Aanholt the road to the first team of Chelsea has been made harder by Bertrand’s emergence last season. After a disappointing loan spell at Wigan Van Aanholt then moved back to Holland to link up with our unofficial partners Vitesse. Whilst not earning rave reviews he made 10 appearances and it looks very likely that he will be joining back up with Vitesse and teammate Tomas Kalas for the coming season. Josh McEachran Last season McEachran made his first loan move away from Chelsea, he spent the second half of the season on loan at Swansea, linking up with former reserve team manager Brendan Rodgers, however this link up was not as beneficial as first thought, McEachran ended up only making 5 appearances for Swansea, the same he managed for Chelsea in the first half of the season. So what happens to McEachran this season? The advent of the U21’s league may encourage Chelsea to keep him at the club and play him in this league as the idea is to be the best U21 players competing against each other and make some first team appearances along the way. The alternative of course is another loan. There has been a lot of talk in recent days of McEachran being loaned to Wigan as part of a deal to bring Victor Moses to Stamford Bridge. I would imagine in the case of McEachran a loan is more likely, I just pray he gets the games he needs. Ulises Davilla Signed last summer from Guadalajara in Mexico Davilla immediate moved to Vitesse where he spent the season acclimatising to Europe. He only made 3 appearances for the Vitesse first team but played more games for their reserve side. He has recently stated that he will be joining Chelsea for Pre Season and going on the tour of America. The club may want to bring him to England and use him in the U21’s league this season, however, obtaining a work permit is an issue. If the club are unable to get a work permit then he will most certainly go on loan and Spain has been mentioned as a possible place for him to go. Lucas Piazon Lucas Piazon could be a first team wild card for the coming season. Having joined up with Chelsea last season he had a very impressive first season in the U18’s and reserves and really stood out as a player who can go far. At the end of the season he caught the eye of Di Matteo and spent a lot of time with the first team and even made the first team bench. If he can earn a spot on the US tour and impress there could be chances for him during the season as he plays in the U21’s league. He has said before that the club do not intend to loan him out. So who will bridge the divide to the first team this season? Only time will tell but this is a talented group of players and there are many more talented players looking to push behind them. Click here to view the article