Marc Guéhi proven right in ‘right decision’ to leave Chelsea

After finding success on loan at Swansea City in the Championship for a couple seasons, Marc Guéhi decided to leave Chelsea last summer. The young center back explained the decision at the time as the “right decision” for his career, as he was looking for “regular football” at Premier League level.

And that decision has certainly been proven right. The 21-year-old has been ever-present for Crystal Palace, playing all but 90 minutes available to him (across all competitions), most on the team, and even captaining the side a few times already. It’s highly unlikely that he would’ve had that level of involvement, even under the most ideal of circumstances, had he stayed — even if we’ve continued to mostly play with three center backs. Of course, given the contractual situations of Antonio Rüdiger and Andreas Christensen, it sure would have been useful to have Guéhi for next season!

“The decision to leave Chelsea and come to Palace was the right one, to get that game time and show what I can do.

“Coming here didn’t mean it was a given I was going to play, I still had to prove myself, work hard, train hard, but it was definitely the club I thought would give me the platform. For my development it was important go somewhere permanent, play regular, and feel at home somewhere.”

While we can use his success as another stick with which to beat the Chelsea player development process, especially in hindsight, it’s perhaps more constructive to simply acknowledge and appreciate the fact that we’ve graduated yet another Premier League-quality player. That sort of success will keep the Academy attractive to young talent looking to make their way in the game (either at Chelsea or somewhere else) — an especially important factor going forward given our changing ownership situation and, presumably, level of funding.

Guéhi has been on the losing end twice against Chelsea this season, which will only add extra motivation to Sunday’s FA Cup semifinals, as if he needed any more.

“I’m a calm person but playing [at Wembley] is such a big occasion. I just hope come game time everyone is focused and ready to go.”

“[...] The motivation is there for every game. Not because it is Chelsea, because I grew up there and spent time there that that gives me extra motivation. The fact it is a semi-final for Crystal Palace that’s the motivation.”

-Marc Guéhi; source: Mail

Chelsea do have a “matching clause” for any bids should Guéhi ever decide to leave Crystal Palace. For now, we can only wish him continued good fortune and success — except of course on Sunday.