There’s so many new signings at Chelsea this summer for the supporters to get excited about going into the upcoming season.
Despite joining Chelsea last summer, Romeo Lavia does also kind of feel like a new signing. His 2023/24 campaign was wrecked by injury and he made just one appearance for the Blues, so let’s hope his second year is far more productive.
Lavia’s had a strong pre-season schedule under new head coach Enzo Maresca, who’s someone he crossed paths with at Manchester City.
The 20-year-old defensive midfielder has shown this summer he’s a natural fit as a No 6 in Maresca’s system. However, there’s a lot of competition for places in the current squad.
It’s encouraging that The Athletic recently shared Chelsea have earmarked Lavia as a future leader. In the meantime, the Belgian youngster’s focus should be on staying fit and forcing his way into the starting line-up.
Theo Walcott worried about Romeo Lavia minutes
Theo Walcott, who previously played alongside Lavia at Southampton, is fearful about his former teammate going into the new season.
He’s shared that he’s a huge fan of the £58m (Sky Sports) midfielder, but suggests his path would’ve been much better if he had joined Liverpool over Chelsea a year ago.
Walcott said on the BBC’s Monday Night Club: “I played with Lavia at Southampton, who’s a very talented footballer… There was talk of him going to Chelsea or Liverpool. I thought as a player Liverpool would be the perfect club for you right now because the midfield at that particular time was rebuilding…
“As a career path, he’s been stagnated a little bit. I think he’s had a really good pre-season. I hope he plays… It was sad for him that he missed the whole year [last season], but he’s had a good pre-season.
“Lavia, I just felt that Liverpool was a perfect club for him at that time in his career if he was to move on.
“I’m worried that he’ll be one of those Chelsea players that will just be gone and you won’t hear much of him. With the amount of players they’re signing, good players just won’t get a chance.”
Romeo Lavia can have a big season at Chelsea
Of course, the sheer size of Chelsea’s squad means certain individuals will miss out. However, there should be plenty of minutes to go around if the Blues go deep in domestic and European competitions.
In the case of Lavia, he must have a great chance of having a successful year under Maresca.
There could be competition from teammates Enzo Fernandez or Moises Caicedo as the deep-lying midfielder, but all the signs in pre-season are that he’s firmly in the plans to play an important role. The aforementioned duo can play deeper or as No 8s in midfield.
When it comes to Chelsea’s Premier League opener against Manchester City, don’t be surprised is Lavia is included in the XI.
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