The last season was nothing but sheer disappointment for Chelsea. They started the season as the Premier League holders but ended the season somehow in the top half. Fan favourite Jose Mourinho was sacked in the process and Guus Hiddink came on an interim basis to save the ship from sinking. The Dutch manager did his job quite well. Chelsea are in safe hands now. Under Antonio Conte, the Blues look ready to restore their lost glory.
Well, as they say, there is always something good hidden in even the worst things. While Chelsea were having a disaster of a season, Chelsea fans must have thought that they have found a gem in their starlet Bertrand Traore. The Burkina Faso international was one of the few reasons behind the fans’ smiles last campaign and it was a bit surprising to see him moving on loan to Ajax in the summer.
Traore scored four times and set up one from just 16 games last season in a Chelsea shirt. He was a regular for the Blues in the pre-season too under Conte and did do a decent job. Even after that, Chelsea loaning him out was as surprising for the player himself as for the fans. The 21-year-old publicly slammed the Blues for their loan strategy which has been under scrutiny earlier too.
Traore has been quite impressive for Ajax this season on loan from Chelsea. He has four goals to his name from 17 games in all competitions for the Eredivisie giants. While he has been impressive in front of goal, his creativity has also been top-notch as he has already bagged 3 assists.
Chelsea have a strategy of loaning out too many players and it is going on and on for a long time. This is such a shame for the young players who feel they are ready for the first-team but don’t get their chance. Chelsea have lost players like Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku for the same reason while there is a long list of players who have failed to reach their potential during their struggle to make the first team. Remember Josh McEachran or Lucas Piazon? Both were highly-rated youngsters but failed to make the grade simply because Chelsea did not believe in them!
Traore being outspoken about Chelsea’s loan policy is understandable. He is very young and we can understand the reason behind his frustration! Outside Chelsea’s first-team squad, there is a much bigger array of talented players and Traore is probably the biggest among them.
It will be a loss to Chelsea if Traore’s future is not at Stamford Bridge. His versatility and decisive nature across the final third are much ahead of his age. With his quality, the 21-year-old will definitely get a club who believe in him.
