How Rangnick to Man Utd affects Chelsea wonderkid

James Shearman

• 8 Dec 2021 09:58 CST
• 3 min read

Chelsea youngster Tino Anjorin's future is up in the air after Ralf Rangnick's move to Manchester United.

The wonderkid is a product of the Blues' excellent academy system, but opted to leave the club last summer in favour of first-team football.

And even though he had offers from a number of teams, he chose to take his talents to the Russian Premier League.

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Anjorin signed for Lokomotiv Moscow on a season-long loan, with a £17million option to buy - which his new club were expected to meet.

He was even handed the number 10 shirt, which had been previously retired.

However, the key factor in his decision was the project put forward by Rangnick - the club's manager of sports and development at the time.

But now that the German has left his plans for Lokomotiv behind, unsurprisingly accepting the role of Manchester United manager when it was offered to him last month, the situation Anjorin now finds himself in is far from ideal.

Add to that, the 20-year-old suffered a broken metatarsal ahead of a Europa League meeting with Galatasaray in November which has kept him out ever since.

What next for Anjorin?

In recent weeks, Anjorin has been back at Chelsea to undergo rehabilitation from the unfortunate foot injury he sustained.

But there is a distinct possibility that he may not return to Russia, not even once his injury heals.

That's because without Rangnick's influence on Lokomotiv Moscow, Anjorin, and others, will view the club as a far less attractive proposition.

Instead, the wonderkid could be recalled to Stamford Bridge and found another loan, potentially to a fellow English Premier League side, following in the footsteps of former teammate Armando Broja who is enjoying life at Southampton.

Or, the striker could simply stay at Chelsea where he, seemingly, has a positive relationship with manager Thomas Tuchel.

"He is strong, confident, creative, assists and scores a lot of goals in training for us," the Champions League-winning boss said of Anjorin last summer.

Indeed, he would struggle for regular playing time in west London, but learning from world-class in the Chelsea squad might not be a bad idea.