Chelsea FC Loan Roundup: April 2, 2013

We're getting down to the end of the season for most of our young players on loan, as there are now only a handful of weeks until many of them return to Cobham. Some of the early returns will likely take part in our pilgrimage to America, while others will simply get some time off at the end of the year. They're still being given a chance to make an impression on the pitch though, ad here's what they did this past week:

• Romelu Lukaku (West Bromwich Albion): Lukaku had a decent enough weekend as West Brom lost to West Ham 3-1. He didn't get on the scoresheet, but did win a penalty and fire a couple of decent shots.

• Thibaut Courtois (Atletico Madrid): Valencia managed to get a goal past Thibaut Courtois over the weekend, but it was still another excellent showing from the Belgian as Atletico managed a draw.

• Michael Essien (Real Madrid): Essien played a solid 90 minutes in this weekend's 1-1 draw, and looked like he'd have fit right in at Chelsea this season. Hopefully Jose Mourinho keeps him around this summer after he replaces the plump placewarmer.

• Lucas Piazon (Malaga): Piazon was on the bench as Malaga returned to action, and came on for the final 13 minutes of a 3-1 victory. His passing was solid, and he had plenty of touches in the cameo, and he managed to get a shot off in that time.

• Kevin De Bruyne (Werder Bremen): De Bruyne had an excellent international break, but wasn't very good for his club this weekend. His passing and tackling were sloppy, and he wasn't doing a great job off the ball. Hopefully he gets back in sync with his club teammates soon.
• Jeffrey Bruma (Hamburger SV): The good news? Bruma had one of HSV's 2 goals against Bayern Munich this weekend. The bad news? By that point, Bayern had already scored 8 of the 9 they'd put in the HSV net. Despite the goal, it was definitely not a good weekend to be Jeffrey Bruma.

• Matej Delac (Inter Zapresic): Delac is starting to shake several years of rust off, and was reportedly in fantastic form over the weekend for Inter Zapresic. He made several highlight reel saves in the 2-2 draw, and is quickly reminding Chelsea fans why he caught our eye in the first place. With Croatia joining the EU this summer, he'll no longer need a work permit to play in England. It will certainly be a situation to watch.

• Tomas Kalas (Vitesse Arnhem): Kalas was solid in Vitesse's 2-1 victory this weekend, although it was a relatively quiet game for the young Czech defender. He played the full 90 minutes.
• Patrick van Aanholt (Vitesse Arnhem): PvA has suffered a shoulder injury, and looks as if he might be out for a few weeks.
• Gael Kakuta (Vitesse Arnhem): Kakuta was one of the best players on the pitch for the Arnhem side this weekend, creating loads of chances and having an assist incorrectly waved off for offside. His all-around game is developing nicely, and he appears to be making better decisions than at this time a year ago.

• Kenneth Omeruo (ADO Den Haag): Omeruo played the full 90 minutes in Den Haag's 4-0 loss this weekend, and it was far from his best outing of the season.

• Thorgan Hazard (Zulte-Waregem): Hazard was excellent over 90 minutes as Zulte fought to a 1-1 draw over the weekend. Next up for Zulte will be Genk.

• Wallace (Fluminense): Wallace has seen a few games since the last time we checked in, as Flu were not off for the international break. He started and played a solid 78 minutes in a scoreless draw against Duque de Caxias before being used as a late time wasting substitute several days later. It's good to see he's no longer being left out of Flu's rotation due to his impending departure.

• Josh McEachran (Middlesbrough): Josh was an unused substitute as Boro lost again
• Sam Hutchinson (Nottingham Forest): Hutchinson finally returned to the starting eleven against Brighton, although he isn't yet fit enough to play a full 90 minutes. He looked ok, although a bit rusty, and will probably continue to see minutes as Forest fight for a promotion playoff place. He wasn't used against Burnley, although this appeared to be more precautionary than anything to do with his knee.
• Todd Kane (Blackburn Rovers): Kane started a pair of games this weekend, and was probably Blackburn's best player over that span. He assisted the only Rovers' goal in either game, setting up Jordan Rhodes after some fine buildup play. Kane is one that would have been eligible for the NextGen weekend had he not been on loan, so it's good that he saw plenty of action.
• George Saville (Millwall): Saville's loan isn't going so well, as the pair of games this weekend brought no minutes for the youngster. He was an unused sub on Friday, and was not in the matchday squad yesterday afternoon. I don't believe he is injured, so this would seem to be a managerial decision.
• Nathaniel Chalobah (Watford): Chalobah had another solid game for Watford as they drew 3-3. He had an injury scare that required him to be carried off on a stretcher, but managed to return to the contest and finish the full 90 minutes.
• Ulises Davila (CE Sabadell): Davila was mostly poor in 90 minutesover the weekend as Sabadell lost badly. The entire team was fairly poor though, so at least he wasn't alone.
• Patrick Bamford (MK Dons): Bamford has struggled with fitness, but he's healthy again and trying to make up for lost time. Patrick played 58 minutes and scored on Friday, before plying 78 excellent minutes on Monday. Now that he's healthy, it looks as if Bamford will see plenty of minutes as the season winds down for Dons.
• Sam Walker, Billy Clifford (Colchester United): Walker started both of this weekend's games for Colchester, and was impressive in each of the contests. Clifford was mostly anonymous on Friday before being an unused substitute on Monday.
• Jhon Pirez (Leganes): Pirez was not involved this weekend, I fear he may no longer exist. Sigh.