Gianfranco Zola says there’s a £12m youngster at Chelsea he’s a big fan of

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Blues legend Gianfranco Zola has shared that he’s actually a massive fan of Chelsea’s 21-year-old youngster.

There’s been a clear focus on assembling a talented young Chelsea squad across the recent windows, so there’s plenty of amazing prospects in the group with very high ceilings.

For Enzo Maresca, his tough job as the Blues manager is to get this young team performing at the highest level.

Moises Caicedo previously shared Chelsea’s target is a top-four finish, and it’s been a positive start to the season because they’re fourth after seven Premier League games. Can this inexperienced group sustain it over an entire campaign, though?

• READ MORE: Gary Lineker may already be regretting his pre-season prediction about Chelsea just seven games in

Gianfranco Zola rates Cesare Casadei

Gianfranco Zola has explained that he really likes Chelsea’s Italian midfielder Cesare Casadei. In fact, he’s hopeful that his fellow countryman can grow into a success at Stamford Bridge.

“I have high esteem of him. I saw him playing youth level. I saw him in Leicester. I really like it. He really needs to have a chance. The competition is strong in Chelsea, but strong competition makes a strong player. I hope he can make it.”

Chances for Cesare Casadei

Casadei, who’s aged just 21, is an exciting youngster in the Chelsea first team.

The central midfielder was kept in a competitive squad this season, so he’s only made two appearances so far. However, he did catch the eye in a positive way against Barrow (Carabao Cup) and Gent (Conference League).

We’d insist that the powerful talent gets some more minutes in the various cup competitions in the upcoming games because he looks fairly comfortable.

Interestingly, Maresca is deploying Casadei a bit deeper in the defensive midfield position, which definitely suits his physical attributes.

Casadei, who cost Chelsea £12m (The Guardian) in the summer of 2022, is very much still a work in progress. But we’re optimistic about his future if he can get more minutes on the pitch and stay active this season.