Despite a very fruitful half-season loan stint in France with Reims, left-back Baba Rahman did not get a look in by manager Frank Lampard during Chelsea’s preseason. In fact it turns out that his plans for the term lie elsewhere, as he joins Spanish club Mallorca on a season-long loan deal after signing a new Chelsea contract until June 2022.
✍ Acuerdo con el @ChelseaFC para la cesión de @babarahmangh
— RCD Mallorca (@RCD_Mallorca) September 2, 2019
➡️ https://t.co/5ePOTnfeaa#JuntsSomMillors ⚫️ pic.twitter.com/LauYwCv2Ah
Baba Rahman joined Chelsea in summer 2015 as a very promising defender from German club Augsburg, following a breakout season for the Bundesliga outfit. Unfortunately for us, he was unable to reproduce the same level of play he showed during his time in Germany, quickly diminishing his stock with the fanbase in his debut season.
He headed out on loan in the following season, moving back to Germany in August 2016 to join Schalke 04 on a season-long loan stint. Unfortunately for him, that is when he started picking up knee injuries that amounted to him missing almost one-and-a-half year of playing time from January 2017 until May 2018.
His latest loan spell at Reims showed a lot of promise from the 25-year-old who had several solid performances, most notably in a 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain where he contributed with a goal and an assist. He carried out this form to this year’s Africa Cup of Nations, helping Ghana reach the round of 16 stage from which they were eliminated by Tunisia on penalties.
At Mallorca, he will battle for the starting left-back position with fellow countryman Lumor, who joined the Spanish club on loan from Portugal’s Sporting. At the national team, Lumor is Baba’s backup — and the situation should be similar at club level as well.
Good luck, Baba!