Trevoh Chalobah EMBARRASSES Chelsea

Tom Weber

Updated: 21 Jan 2025 12:16 GMT
4 min read

Trevoh Chalobah, Chelsea, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Trevoh Chalobah put in a Man of the Match performance on his return to Chelsea and, if anything, this reflects badly on the club.

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The 25-year-old had his season-long loan to Crystal Palace cut short last week as Chelsea needed another defender following injuries to Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile.

In the summer, the Blues had done everything in their power to force Chalobah - a fan favourite and academy graduate - out of the club. They omitted him from their pre-season tour of the US and removed him from Enzo Maresca's first team to train with the rest of the club's 'Bomb Squad.'

A year prior, Chelsea had similarly tried to offload Chalobah but in both instances, no permanent transfer materialised. However, it was clear that the versatile defender couldn't stay at Chelsea, so he joined Crystal Palace on an initial loan.

His stint at Selhurst Park ultimately would not last long and he played his first game back in Chelsea colours on Monday.

Chalobah embarrasses Chelsea

Lining up next to Tosin Adarabioyo at the heart of the Blues' backline, Chalobah was brilliant against Wolves and was named the Man of the Match as Chelsea ran out 3-1 victors.

Chalobah thus again proved what was already evident before, that he is one of the club's best and most reliable defenders. Additionally, he is homegrown and versatile to boot, having previously also played at right-back and in holding midfield.

It boggles the mind that Chelsea were - and, by all accounts, still are - desperate to get rid of him. It is expected that Chalobah will leave the club again in the summer and there have even been sensational reports that he could be sold this month, although that ship has sailed now as he is no longer eligible to play for another club this season.

Of course, financial considerations are at the heart of this. Chalobah is a remnant of the Roman Abramovich era and is on a similar or potentially even bigger salary than, for example, Blues target Marc Guehi, who was linked with a potentially record-breaking transfer to Newcastle in the summer.

As an academy product, Chalobah would represent 'pure profit' on Chelsea's balance sheet and given that they have spent north of €1 billion on signings under Todd Boehly, that kind of income is sorely needed.

However, when looking at the Chalobah case, one can't help but feel frustrated about the club's transfer policy. To be sure, it is beginning to yield some results this season, with the team much improved compared to previous years.

But Chelsea still make so many mistakes and pointless decisions in their transfer dealings. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Joao Felix and Christopher Nkunku are all players who joined for significant fees - the first two only arrived in the summer - and they could all leave the club again soon.

The player turnover at Stamford Bridge has been nothing short of ridiculous in recent windows and if Chelsea do decide to sell Chalobah this year, it will go down as another bizarre decision.

He is homegrown, he cares about the club and he's an eminently reliable player. There is no reason to sell him other than to raise funds for more profligate spending on players Chelsea likely don't even need - or to balance the books and rectify the mistakes of the past.