At this time of year, the obsession with signing new players makes it easy to forget the ridiculous talent already on our books, bubbling up from the academy.
There are few players as exciting or talented on our books as Tyrique George, the flying winger who last season started to get some recognition from the average Chelsea fan for his sensational goals in the youth teams.
Taking him on the USA tour was a huge vote of confidence in the teenager and in the academy in general, and the Chelsea media team are leaning into it with regular updates from the camp.
They’ve just put out a long interview with him where he talks about what it’s like being with the big boys and treated like a proper member of the first team:
“I have been at Chelsea since I was eight years old so to have the chance to play for the first team for the first time, with players who not long ago I was watching on TV, was so special. I was very excited and this is another big step in my career. It was such a good experience. There are so many kids out there who dream of a moment like this, playing with players you would be on EA FC. It was incredible,” he explained.
The senior players helping out
It’s very sweet to hear what it means to Tyrique – another reminder of how important it is to give our brightest academy talents the chance to work with the first team and to appear on the bench during the season. It means more to them than you can imagine, and goes a long way to assuring them that there is a pathway available if they’re good enough.
He also picked out some players who had helped him in particular:
“The likes of Raheem [Sterling], Noni [Madueke] and Carney [Chukwuemeka] have also been giving me advice during the tour and it all helps with my confidence and being able to just play my own game.”
