It was back in the summer transfer window when the emergence of Trevoh Chalobah offered Thomas Tuchel an internal solution to an issue the club were actively trying to solve in the transfer window.
The pursuit of Jules Kounde led Chelsea all the way to deadline day with Sevilla when a sudden hike in the fee for the French defender during negotiations forced the European champions to reconsider their stance on a deal.
Eventually, the proposed move completely stalled as the clock passed 11pm and Kounde remained in La Liga despite his belief he would be heading to Stamford Bridge after having reportedly already agreed to personal terms.
Although we cannot rule out the possibility of Kounde signing for Chelsea in 2022, the promotion of Chalobah certainly gave Marina Granovskaia an insurance policy even after the sale of Kurt Zouma to West Ham.
The trend of Cobham academy graduates providing the answers to squad issues has become a repeating theme since 2019 and has undoubtedly saved the club significantly in transfer fees.
Chalobah’s presence alone arguably saved around £72m given Sevilla’s demands for Chelsea to meet Kounde’s release clause.
Chalobah’s impact this season has been a welcome surprise with a string of impressive performances that has added options to Tuchel’s squad in numerous positions and his development could set a precedent for Chelsea to save even more in the future.
Next summer may provide a desired sequel to this story with another young defender from Chelsea’s academy currently out on loan and thriving in the Championship.
18-year-old Levin Colwill joined Huddersfield Town for the 2021/22 campaign and has been one of the standout defenders in England’s second tier, already exciting supporters who are avid followers of the young player’s development out on loan.
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The impressive defensive numbers for such a young player speak for themselves, as Alex Goldberg pointed out on Twitter, with only two teenagers in the league in the top 100 for interceptions so far this season. Colwill is one of them in 32nd, while the other is Ian Maatsen, another Chelsea loan player at Coventry in 90th.
The pair are also in the top 100 for tackles won, Maatsen as high as fifth with Colwill 26th.
Chelsea’s defensive plans for 2022 are already in motion with The Athletic reporting that Tuchel plans to take a look at Colwill next summer after he returns from his first senior loan away.
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This offers the German a potential alternative with rumours circulating of the club looking at other defensive targets such as Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus for an exorbitant fee.
Especially as older players such as Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger have contracts running down, the need to refresh the defence in the upcoming transfer window is clear.
Colwill, as Chalobah did, can provide a surprising answer for Tuchel and bolster the first-team squad for the upcoming season if the German deems the defender as being ready to make the big jump up.
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