‘Hasn’t played particularly well’… ESPN pundit not impressed by what he’s seen from £35m Chelsea player

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Chelsea’s Benoit Badiashile has struggled to impress when he’s played this season.

That is according to Craig Burley.

Benoit Badiashile, who’s just 22, has had a pretty disrupted season so far.

The young French defender’s only played 12 games across all competitions so far this campaign, which has certainly not helped him find any form or rhythm.

He’s come under-fire for criticism during various part of the season. For instance, speaking via talkSPORT last month, Gabriel Agbonlahor labelled Badiashile as “dreadful” in January’s 4-1 league defeat to Liverpool.

ESPN pundit Burley has not been impressed by Badiashile when he’s watched him in Chelsea’s defence this season.

“The centre-half position has been an issue… Badiashile has come in, he hasn’t played particularly well,” Burley told ESPN.

Benoit Badiashile struggles

We agree Badiashile’s taken a small step back in his Chelsea career, but there’s loads of time for the young talent to get back on track.

The left-footed centre-back moved to Stamford Bridge in a £35 million transfer (BBC) from Monaco back in January 2023. Initially, the French colossus hit the ground running with some impressive displays for the Blues.

We’d argue that he’s fallen down the centre-back pecking order under Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino.

Axel Disasi and Levi Colwill look well positioned to get a run as Chelsea’s main starting central defenders, with veteran star Thiago Silva finally phased out. For Badiashile, he needs to be ready to pounce when he gets his next opportunity once he returns from a current injury.

The Evening Standard previously claimed on 12 February that Badiashile could be sidelined with a groin problem for about a month. It means he’ll watch from the stands his teammates try to win the League Cup final against Liverpool this Sunday at Wembley Stadium.