Chelsea’s academy demonstrated not the first time they are amongst Europe’s very best development systems thanks to their most recent triumph.
It was confirmed last night that the Under-21s side had qualified through to the knockout stages of the EFL Trophy.
Farewell to the fallen clubs
Arsenal and Aston Villa were the only other Premier League 2 teams to progress to the latter stages of the competition.
This is the fewest number of academies to advance since they were allowed to enter the tournament in 2016.
The likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Leicester City, Leeds United, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur all failed to move forward in the cup.
But the young Blues live to fight another day, highlighting Cobham’s continued commitment to their rising stars.
Brilliant Blues
En route to qualification, Andy Myers’ side faced Cheltenham Town, Bristol Rovers and Exeter City.
They lost to Cheltenham on penalties, beat Bristol 2-1 and defeated Exeter via spot-kicks.
For Chelsea fans, the junior’s success against their more experienced opponents should come as no surprise.
The quality on show throughout the squad is only matched by a select few across the country.
In goal, the highly-rated Teddy Sharman-Lowe, is one of many to have rub shoulders with Thomas Tuchel’s group before.
Protecting him is the mighty presence of Xavier Mbuyamba, another regular trainer with the Champions League holders.
Harvey Vale runs the midfield, a player tipped to possibly break into the senior set-up next season.
Up top is the extremely talented figure of Jude Soonsup-Bell.
Keep flying the Stamford Bridge flag lads!
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