One thing that has been a clear focus for Chelsea since Todd Boehly bought the club in 2022 was to build a strong core of young players. Granted, this has not been a cheap process, but there is no doubt the Blues have a good group of youngsters with whom they can build towards the future.
Of course, there are several of these players who are already making waves in the first team with Enzo Maresca. The likes of Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson spring to mind, both of whom are just 23 years of age. Cole Palmer is younger, only 22, and Romeo Lavia is 20 years old.
With such stiff competition for places, it does leave some of the younger players on the fringe of the squad with fewer chances to impress.
However, several of the Blues’ younger stars have picked up minutes on international duty this week.
Chelsea’s young international stars
There have been five prominent players at Stamford Bridge who have been playing age-group football for their countries during the November international break. Goalkeeper Lucas Bergstrom is one player away on international duty. The Finland youth international helped his side to a 5-1 thrashing over Norway, conceding a goal in the 42nd minute.
Marc Guiu is another young player away with his national team’s age group side. The striker, who joined the Blues from Barcelona in the summer, plays for Spain’s under-19 side but did not get on the scoresheet in a 3-0 win over the Faroe Islands under-19s. He recently scored his first goal for Chelsea in the Europa Conference League against FC Noah.
Frustratingly, one player pushing for a starting berth at Stamford Bridge, Filip Jorgensen, had to pull out of national team duty with injury. Since joining from Villarreal last season, the goalkeeper has played seven times for the Blues and could have had a chance to further stake his claim with Denmark under-21s this week had it not been for a fitness issue.
Malo Gusto, who has played 11 games for the Blues this season in captain Reece James’ absence, should also have played age-group football this week, for France under-21s. Sadly, like Jorgensen, the right-back also missed the November camp due to injury.
Interestingly, Gusto could have played against a Chelsea teammate had he stayed with the squad, Italy under-21 midfielder Cesare Casadei.
Casadei’s time with Italy under-21s
Talented Italian midfielder Casadei has had a tough time of things at Stamford Bridge. He initially joined the club in 2022 from Inter and cost £12.6m up front with a further £4.2m in add-ons.
He has so far played just 15 times for the club, having been out on loan at Reading in his first season and Leicester City last term, before being recalled in January. The midfielder played under Maresca at the King Power Stadium, so it may be surprising that he has featured just four times under him this season.
He certainly impressed for Italy under-21s this week, against Gusto’s nation of France. The former Inter academy starlet got himself on the scoresheet from midfield but was superb outside of that. The 6 foot 1 midfielder also won nine duels and created one chance, as per Sofascore.
Casadei stats vs France under-21s | |
|---|---|
Stat | Number |
Touches | 48 |
Passes completed | 26/34 |
Ground duels won | 5/9 |
Aerial duels won | 4/5 |
Tackles won | 3/3 |
Chances created | 1 |
Goals | 1 |
Stats from Sofascore | |
It might well be frustrating for the youngster that he has not quite had an opportunity under Maresca yet. Football analyst Ben Mattinson described him as a “game changer”, praising his ability to arrive into the box and get on the end of crosses.
With the Blues fighting on all fronts in three competitions, including the FA Cup which is yet to get started for them, there are plenty of opportunities for Casadei to stake a claim for a more permanent role in the Stamford Bridge midfield.
His performance against France will only have worked in his favour, and Casadei will no doubt be hoping to kick on from here. As Mattinson stated, he could well be a ‘game changer’ for the Blues in the near future.
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