Cesare Casadei feels the decision to end his loan spell early with Leicester was the right one, because of the lessons he learned on and off the pitch with the Foxes.
Casadei joined the Blues from Inter Milan in the summer of 2022 and initially started at the club’s academy where he featured regularly for the under-21 side.
The youngster spent the second half of the 2022/2023 season on loan at Reading, his first exposure to senior football, before spending the first half of last season at Championship winners Leicester.
Casadei feels loan moves have convinced him he belongs at Chelsea
The 21-year-old featured 15 times during his loan spell with Reading, before playing 25 times and scoring three goals for Leicester under incoming Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca.
Loan moves can act as a really important part of a young players development, and perhaps the Italian would have benefited from staying at Leicester for the whole season and playing more regular football.
However, the midfielder insists there was doubt in his mind about the decision, even though he featured sparingly for the Blues in the second half of last season.
“I was really happy to be here in the second half of the season”, Casadei told Chelsea’s website.
“Chelsea is my team and that was my dream, to be able to play for Chelsea.
“Obviously to go on loan is part of the journey but my target was always to come back here and play for Chelsea.
“They asked me if I was happy to come back and I said “yes” straight away because to come back here to Chelsea was my target.
“My goal was to be able to be here, to train every day in the first team.
“I wasn’t really expecting the call, I was just doing my journey with Leicester and I was just trying to be focused on that and not think about other things.
“But when they called, I was really happy and really excited.”
The Italy under-21 international made 11 appearances for the Blues, all from the bench, and explained how his time at Reading and Leicester had given him the confidence that he belonged at Chelsea.
“I didn’t know anyone here so it was not that easy, but going on loan helped me to grow as a player and as a person as well.
“In terms of football, I learned a lot because Reading and then Leicester were my first experiences in real football, between the adults.
“I had to be in a group of adults, not young guys, It helped me a lot because there is another tempo in the game, another intensity.”
It will be interesting to see what Maresca decides to do with Casadei next season given his previous experience of working with the midfielder.
