Nathaniel Chalobah

[nono 791]

If Watford want to keep him, he should spend another season there.

There's no real rush for him, is there?

There is no rush for a player who isn't good enough at the moment to play for us. If he'd come here he wouldn't be able to get a game at all. He should stay at Watford or go on somewhere else on loan where he can improve.

[The only place to be 11,313]

If Watford want to keep him, he should spend another season there.

There's no real rush for him, is there?

There's nothing to be gained from loaning him to another Championship club.

There is no rush for a player who isn't good enough at the moment to play for us. If he'd come here he wouldn't be able to get a game at all. He should stay at Watford or go on somewhere else on loan where he can improve.

There were 'supporters' like you trashing Lukaku in his thread about 12 months ago. I suppose that's sort of a good sign for him.

I'm hoping Jose has watched more than one game (where his coach was completely outmanoeuvred by his opposite number) and told him yesterday that he'll be moving on.

But this thread has revealed there is a part of our support that really doesn't give a fuck about our future, a future that this player represents and should be celebrated. We've got a fantastically exciting academy and players like Ake have put paid to this notion that the jump to first-team football is insurmountable by giving very good performances when given the chance.

[TorontoChelsea 4,064]

There's nothing to be gained from loaning him to another Championship club.

There were 'supporters' like you trashing Lukaku in his thread about 12 months ago. I suppose that's sort of a good sign for him.

I'm hoping Jose has watched more than one game (where his coach was completely outmanoeuvred by his opposite number) and told him yesterday that he'll be moving on.

But this thread has revealed there is a part of our support that really doesn't give a fuck about our future, a future that this player represents and should be celebrated. We've got a fantastically exciting academy and players like Ake have put paid to this notion that the jump to first-team football is insurmountable by giving very good performances when given the chance.

The notion that Ake has proven that he's good enough to play for Chelsea in any important role is absurd. He played in 6 games, 2 of them came as literally a 90th minute sub and the rest of them were in second-tier games. He hasn't proven anything at all. You are conflating two issues. Chelsea's future with our prospects and young players. The reality is that they don't matter very much because we spend 60M pounds a year. We can spend 5 years developing someone who might turn into a good player or we can buy Hazard, who is already the best player in France two years in a row at 21 and Oscar who is already Brazil's #10. That's the way top teams do things.

Chalobah might turn out and he might not, but it will be at least a year and more likely 2 or 3 before he is ready to even play for that role. We are a team trying to compete for everything. The goal of the club is not to develop youngsters, it's to win. Developing young players is a very small part of that. We have been one of the most successful clubs in the world over the last decade and have developed nobody particularly noteworthy in that period. Taking someone like Chalobah, with one year's experience in a vastly inferior league, into the first team would be ridiculous for a team trying to win. It'd be fine for Southampton, not for Chelsea. Developing young players is nice and people always like tracking their progress, but I'll never understand the fascination with and massively overrating of youth players. It just leads to massive disappointments when they inevitably fail to live up to what were unrealistic expectations to begin with.

[The only place to be 11,313]

The notion that Ake has proven that he's good enough to play for Chelsea in any important role is absurd. He played in 6 games, 2 of them came as literally a 90th minute sub and the rest of them were in second-tier games. He hasn't proven anything at all. You are conflating two issues. Chelsea's future with our prospects and young players. The reality is that they don't matter very much because we spend 60M pounds a year. We can spend 5 years developing someone who might turn into a good player or we can buy Hazard, who is already the best player in France two years in a row at 21 and Oscar who is already Brazil's #10. That's the way top teams do things.

Sorry, but top teams do a variety of things. The best ones seem to find a balance between homegrown players and expensive purchases. That is what I and many other Chelsea supporters want to see this club doing.

For every Ribery in the Bayern team, there was a Lahm. For every Dante an Alaba. For every Martinez, a Schweinsteiger.

Plus there's a great joy in seeing someone like Nat come up through the youth team, taking his first tentative steps in the first-team and then (hopefully) establishing himself.

That's the way top teams do things.

Chalobah might turn out and he might not, but it will be at least a year and more likely 2 or 3 before he is ready to even play for that role. We are a team trying to compete for everything. The goal of the club is not to develop youngsters, it's to win. Developing young players is a very small part of that. We have been one of the most successful clubs in the world over the last decade and have developed nobody particularly noteworthy in that period.

Which is what people like Neil Bath were warning people about, saying it would 8-10 years before the academy would start rattling out products like it seems to be on the cusp of now.

Taking someone like Chalobah, with one year's experience in a vastly inferior league, into the first team would be ridiculous for a team trying to win. It'd be fine for Southampton, not for Chelsea. Developing young players is nice and people always like tracking their progress, but I'll never understand the fascination with and massively overrating of youth players. It just leads to massive disappointments when they inevitably fail to live up to what were unrealistic expectations to begin with.

That's where you and I differ. For me it's one of those tiny connections you have to the club, seeing players like JT come up and tracking their progress over decades. Chelsea Football Club isn't just about the trophy cabinet to me.

[Gilvorak 3,734]

Amazes me how people on here overhype almost every youngster the club has on it's books.

Nat simply isn't good enough on the ball to play DM for a club of Chelsea's stature. That shouldn't be a slight on him either considering he's a CB and all.

Same thing goes with Ake. While Josh and Romeu are also equally overhyped on here because of the bizarre hatred for Mikel and Ramires.

Some people are massively under rating the lad on here though. He's not the Yaya/Essien type player the over-zealous fans make him out to be and he will never be better than Mikel/Ramires in that role but he most certainly does have a bright future at CB.

Needs to bulk up though, lad's way too skinny to play there for now, then again he's still only 18....

[IliyaDamyanov 43]

Crystal Palace don't have players for Premier League , do you agree with me ?

[Hutcho 8,443]

Crystal Palace don't have players for Premier League , do you agree with me ?

Not now they have lost their main man to united.

They will 100% do better than Hull though. 17th/18th i reckon.

[nono 791]

Amazes me how people on here overhype almost every youngster the club has on it's books.

Nat simply isn't good enough on the ball to play DM for a club of Chelsea's stature. That shouldn't be a slight on him either considering he's a CB and all.

Same thing goes with Ake. While Josh and Romeu are also equally overhyped on here because of the bizarre hatred for Mikel and Ramires.

Some people are massively under rating the lad on here though. He's not the Yaya/Essien type player the over-zealous fans make him out to be and he will never be better than Mikel/Ramires in that role but he most certainly does have a bright future at CB.

Needs to bulk up though, lad's way too skinny to play there for now, then again he's still only 18....

This is just stupid. It won't take much for him to be a better DM than Mikel.

[Strike 7,217]

He has one bad game in the final and the rest of the season becomes irrelevant. Nat had a very good season, initially as DM and then as the season progressed, he got forward a lot more. I wouldn't say any of his skills as a centre midfielder has reached peak level and I certainly don't think he's ready to be an out and out starter at Chelsea. Another loan is a logical option, maybe an aggressive one in the Premier League club like Hull, Sunderland, Villa where he can grow into a midfield role.

This way, Chalobah can return next year with a full PL season under his belt and can compete with Essien(if not sold yet) and Mikel for the DM slot

[ja1 1,166]

His tweets suggest that he will not be coming back to Watford, someone posted a trio of them above.

Gilvorak I disagree. I have seen games this season where Chalobah has dominated the game at centre midfield, which at 17/18 is crazy, his passing range is impressive although he can definitely be over ambitious at times, he can dribble, and i really think on the ball in the final third he's someone who more often than not makes the right decision. I still don't believe that he's a DM though, certainly capable of playing there but as a midfielder I think he'd excel in a box to box role.

Having said that we shouldn't forget the immense potential he has shown as a younger player at CB, he could still be a good player there. Issues though include how strong he is in the air there, and his strength as well. He played his first game for Watford there but for the rest of the season he's been used in midfield. And he has had a good season there.

[ja1 1,166]

@TheChelsOrg: Loanee Review: Nathaniel Chalobah http://t.co/kNMBtsrNp4

[Jase 43,479]

[lucio 5,418]

nice to see him in good spirits. especially after the playoff defeat

[LDN Blue 7,903]

Some people are massively under rating the lad on here though. He's not the Yaya/Essien type player the over-zealous fans make him out to be and he will never be better than Mikel/Ramires in that role but he most certainly does have a bright future at CB.

Needs to bulk up though, lad's way too skinny to play there for now, then again he's still only 18....

Agreed. He's been a center-back most of his career and is capable of playing DM but it's not his natural position. He's a ball-playing center-back which is always useful, but that's not a reason to "Luiz" him.

[The only place to be 11,313]

Agreed. He's been a center-back most of his career and is capable of playing DM but it's not his natural position. He's a ball-playing center-back which is always useful, but that's not a reason to "Luiz" him.

He was a centre-back in the academy for much of his time before being moved forward, but he's been used almost exclusively in that role for both Watford and England u-21.

Sometimes I'm just unable to comprehend some people's understanding of sport. He's not just 'capable' of playing in midfield, he's fucking good at it and been a revelation there this season.

By Luiz him I presume you mean wait until he's 26 and lacks the physical conditioning to play a midfield role - I don't think we're doing that with him.

[LDN Blue 7,903]

He was a centre-back in the academy for much of his time before being moved forward, but he's been used almost exclusively in that role for both Watford and England u-21.

Sometimes I'm just unable to comprehend some people's understanding of sport. He's not just 'capable' of playing in midfield, he's fucking good at it and been a revelation there this season.

By Luiz him I presume you mean wait until he's 26 and lacks the physical conditioning to play a midfield role - I don't think we're doing that with him.

You're over hyping his abilities imo. I've watched Watford quite often (not just for Chalobah) and though he has a presence about him and also good ability on the ball I think he's at risk from suffering a Phil Jones-affect. Where he's deployed in so many positions that as Roy Keane said he's a "jack of all trades, master of none".

I'm 100% that Chalobah's best position is center back. I think he reading of the game is much better when he's playing at the back line and what more is, he's a traditional English type center back (defending which I've never understood why it's slated).

[The only place to be 11,313]

You're over hyping his abilities imo. I've watched Watford quite often (not just for Chalobah) and though he has a presence about him and also good ability on the ball I think he's at risk from suffering a Phil Jones-affect. Where he's deployed in so many positions that as Roy Keane said he's a "jack of all trades, master of none".

I've watched Watford a lot and I disagree. Fuck knows what you're on about with the Phil Jones comparison considering he's made that midfield position his own for both club and country. Jones has been used in about 4 different positions over his professional career at United - Chalobah has really only played one or two at most.

I'm 100% that Chalobah's best position is center back. I think he reading of the game is much better when he's playing at the back line and what more is, he's a traditional English type center back (defending which I've never understood why it's slated).

I'm sure he could play at CB, but he's the complete opposite of the 'traditional English type centre back'. He's the type of ball-playing CB that we tend to say is a continental-style CB which is why Rio Ferdinand was so celebrated in his younger days, and still is to a certain extent. He isn't a ball-lumping Terry Butcher-type by any means, which is pretty much the archetypal English CB because we have tended to value strength and physicality over skill and technique.

The one thing that defines Chalobah's game is time - he always has more time on the ball than other players and that is a very unique trait to have. Coaches at this club, Watford and now England place great emphasis on that type of thing especially in the more congested areas of the pitch which is why he has been moved forward.

The simple fact is that as a midfielder he has a skill set and physicality that we just don't have in great abundance in this country. Look at Bayern and Javi Martinez (a converted defender) who combined physicality, technique and workrate - that is the future of holding midfielders and the closest we have is Jack fucking Rodwell.

[The only place to be 11,313]

Starting on the bench for England u21s tonight, presumably because Stuart Pearce is a no-nothing, buffoonish cunt who is a cancer in the English national setup.....

or he's just being rested.