clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Defender loaned to Aston Villa

Mike Hewitt

Surprising transfer news from Jose Mourinho's press conference today -- Ryan Bertrand is set to go to Aston Villa on loan. The defender hasn't had much chance to play so far this season thanks to Cesar Azpilicueta's emergence as a Chelsea-calibre and Ashley Cole's continued existence, and that means that sending him somewhere he can get playing time is a very good idea for his continued development.

And so Aston Villa is an excellent landing spot. Paul Lambert's side are in trouble and they're frankly not very good; Bertrand is an upgrade for them and I'd expect him to claim a starting spot in fairly short order. Assuming he hasn't fallen off the pace too much thanks to having half a year of doing nothing, this should be a great opportunity for Bertrand to get exposure to life in the Premier League, and will give the club the opportunity to see what they have in the 24-year-old before any decision on Cole's future is made this summer.

The move has now been confirmed on Chelsea's official site.

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the We Ain't Got No History Daily Roundup newsletter!

A daily roundup of Chelsea news from We Ain't Got No History