Josh has been with Chelsea since the age of seven, having been scouted by Pete Harris whilst playing for a local team called Garden City. A cultured central midfielder with a wonderfully crafted left foot, Chelseas academy staff are rightfully expecting big things from Josh McEachran. A regular England Under-16 and Under-17 international, he trained with the first team at the age of 15 and had a season of youth football to his name whilst still at school, before moving on into Reserve football before he turned 17. He is a gifted playmaker. Equally at home in the middle of the park or on the left, he has exceptional touch and vision, and his deftness allows him to bring his team-mates into play in dangerous positions. He has some physical maturing to do, but the club knows this and he has a program specifically designed to build up his strength. Whilst he works on that, he just has to continue expressing himself in a quiet, unassuming manner. Already well versed in academy football, Josh was fast-tracked into the reserve squad despite being just sixteen, and as part of an increasingly younger squad under Steve Holland, he has been one of the brightest stars. Hes not always been good, but whilst his body develops, his mind and skills are way beyond his years. An integral part of the clubs FA Youth Cup team, turning in superb performances in the middle of the park, he was handed a first team squad number (51) in January and has trained with Carlo Ancelottis first team on occasions. He even travelled with the first team for a League Cup tie away to Blackburn in November, and whilst he was not named in the matchday squad, he was clearly held in very high esteem by the Italian. During the 2010 summer pre-season, Josh was involved with the first team throughout, making appearances in three out of four matches, against Crystal Palace, Ajax and Eintracht Frankfurt, and was involved in goals against two of the three. He signed a professional contract on 1 July 2010, and made his competitive first team debut against MK Žilina in the opening game of the 2010-11 UEFA Champions League, coming on as a substitute in a 4-1 win. In the process he became the first player to be born after the UEFA Champions League started on 25 November 1992 to take part in the competition. McEachran made his home debut as a substitute during a League Cup tie against Newcastle United, and made his Premier League debut in the following match; a 1-0 defeat to Manchester City, appearing as a late substitute. McEachran made his first start against MK Žilina, in the UEFA Champions League group stage, and went on to start the final match of the group stage against Marseille. McEachran played the full 90 minutes, and showed flashes of his composure and skill on the ball. A start in the FA Cup against Ipswich Town was followed by occasional substitute appearances, before the youngster started the penultimate match of the season, playing for over an hour in the 2-2 draw against Newcastle United before being replaced by Michael Essien. He also appeared as a substitute in the final game of the season; a disappointing loss to Everton. Having signed a new five-year contract in June McEachran joined up with the first team squad again prior to the 2011-12 season, and was involved in the pre-season tour of Asia, scoring against Aston Villa in the Premier League Asia Trophy Final. Seemingly established as part of the first team set-up, he was an unused substitute for the first few games of the season, and started a League Cup tie against Fulham in which he was unfortunate to be substituted early in the second half after Alex's sending off necessitated a replacement at centre half. He was a late substitute in the next match a 4-1 win against Swansea City and would make two more appearances in the League Cup prior to Christmas. With little opportunity to make an impact in the first team, following another late substitute appearance in the New Year against Wolverhampton Wanderers he was loaned to Swansea City for the remainder of the season. The loan move appeared a good one, as the youngster would be playing under former Chelsea reserve coach Brendan Rodgers, but he found chances limited with the more experienced Gylfi Sigurdsson (who had also joined the club on loan in January) preferred in midfield, and made just five appearances for the Swansea first team before returning to Chelsea in the summer. At the start of the 2012-13 season Josh joined Championship side Middlesbrough on a season-long loan. He played in 38 league matches for the club as they initially mounted a strong promotion challenge before falling away considerably during the second half of the season, ultimately finishing in mid table. Click here to view the record