Andreas Christensen is just one of Chelsea’s long list of players who get loaned to other clubs to build experience, despite having a very less chance of making it to the actual Chelsea starting lineup. However, he may not be one of the players who get loaned just for the sake of it, because he’s perhaps been the most impressive Chelsea loanee of all in the past few years.
Ever since Christensen moved to Bundesliga outfit Borussia Monchengladbach, the Danish centre-back has been an instant hit with the Foals. And in the past couple of years, the 21-year-old has been an integral part of the Gladbach defensive system, regardless of the club’s rather intensive change of managers in the time span.
So much, that even Gladbach were willing to go all out for the Danish International, as they were preparing a record bid for Christensen last summer. Now that the loan contract is officially over for the 21-year-old, and the player has returned to his parent club, should Chelsea fancy keeping the promising defender in their squad roster this upcoming season or should they release him off for a good amount of money or in fact loan him for a few more seasons?
There’s no doubt Christensen is a classy defender who really took on the challenge of playing in a league as big as the Bundesliga. He has been perfect for Gladbach, especially under previous boss Andre Schubert, who implemented the possession based game at Gladbach. Christensen is a great passer of the ball, something he really improved upon under the guidance of Schubert.
In his first season in the Bundesliga, he managed a passing accuracy of 87% and last season, he had an astonishing pass completion rate of 91%. which is actually more than the likes of Julian Weigl and Mats Hummels. He has also completed the most passes than any other Gladbach player this season.
While defensively, he also leads the chart. Christensen averages at least seven defensive actions per game, joint most by any Gladbach player. His overall defensive tally puts him within the top 20 most in the league this season with 121 clearances(16th), 25 blocked shots(2nd) and 70 interceptions.
His tally of 22 blocked shots suggests he’s also very good when it comes to act doggedly as a defensive unit, something which has been quite prevalent under the leadership of Dieter Hecking.
Christensen is tactically versatile, having successfully managed to suit the different playing systems of Andre Schubert and Dieter Hecking respectively. He can forge himself in the middle of the defence or he can also help his side out by occasionally making the advancing runs from the deep and by building up from the back. However, one thing which he really lacks to thrive in the Premier League is his lack of strength.
He may have the physique but he is very uncomfortable when it comes to shrugging off the attackers with power. His lack of pace could also put a stop to his credentials as a top Premier League defender. He can be slow to react to quickly build up play as well.
Overall, there’s not even a single doubt over Christensen’s credentials as a very good and promising young defender but one would say, he’s not ready for the big time just yet. So Chelsea should actually plan to loan him elsewhere or even Gladbach for that matter or in fact, sell him off permanently, as they are reportedly interested in signing Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng.
At just 21 years of age, he has time on his side and a loan move to somewhere else, where he can get game time will definitely suit the Danish International. Preferably, somewhere in the Premier League would be a huge bonus for Christensen, as he can man himself up for the completely new challenge in order to prove himself as a top defender who can thrive in any condition, which for the moment, he seems to lack one.
