Chelsea to utilize youth players to fill midfield depth, as Paredes joins PSG

Chelsea had looked into replacing backup regista Cesc Fàbregas with a new signing this month, but it looks like those intentions will go unfulfilled, partly by design, partly by being outbid for Leandro Paredes by PSG.

That transfer is now complete after this morning’s official confirmations, which leaves Chelsea with three days to fill the gap.

But according to multiple reports from the Chelsea camp, including Matt Law’s latest dispatch in the Telegraph, Chelsea are actually looking to utilize already existing depth for the rest of the season instead of spending huge on a backup (or alienating more academy youngsters by blocking their pathways).

In light of the current Callum Hudson-Odoi situation, that is certainly the most sensible choice from the club, keeping opportunities open for the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ethan Ampadu this season, as well as the likes of Mason Mount next season — and probably not Ivan Rakitic (LOL!), as silly rumors from Spain would want us to believe today.

If we learned anything over the past few years, it’s that we can no longer take the youth’s loyalty for granted — if we actually want them to stay and if we actually want to utilize our world class academy for something more than decoration.

So, despite Sarri’s imploring, there are likely to be no signings this month of the midfield persuasion. For what it’s worth, Sarri trialed both Ethan Ampadu and Mateo Kovačić in the Jorginho-backup role this weekend, with the latter surely passing the test with adequate scores.

That would leave six midfielders for three spots (Kanté, Jorginho, Kovačić, Barkley, Loftus-Cheek, Ampadu), an ideal number, with Kovačić able to play all three roles if needed.