ENZO MARESCA has a wealth of talent at his disposal at Stamford Bridge, with three Cobham starlets already working their way towards first-team involvement.
After starring during the international break for England’s youth teams, 16-year-old Ryan Kavuma-McQueen and 17-year-old Shim Mheuka are two attackers the Italian boss is keen to have available for selection going forward.
Mheuka, who made his Premier League and European debuts for the senior team last season, scored five goals in three games for the Young Lions, while winger Kavuma-McQueen made headlines with a four-goal haul against Germany’s under-17s.
With Cole Palmer and Liam Delap both injured, there may be a spot for these youngsters sooner than anticipated, especially when the Blues travel to Lincoln in the Carabao Cup on 24th September, with Marc Guiu cup-tied for that game.
Maresca opened up in his Friday press conference on the impressive pair: “They are both in my plans, for sure. Shimmy was already with us and played some games for us last year. Ryan is more of a winger.
“I was watching when Ryan scored four goals against Germany, so I was very impressed, but I already knew him. One of my staff is always watching the youth team; they told me he was very good.
I’ve always said with young players, you have to be calm because they can change every day. For sure, though, he is one of the players we are looking at.”
Kavuma-McQueen is incredibly highly rated by those involved in the Chelsea youth system, and the Blues are keen for him not to become the next Rio Ngumoha, who joined Liverpool in pursuit of first-team opportunities he has now been granted.
That’s why, after fighting off interest from Liverpool and Barcelona for his signature, they will be thrilled that he is set to sign his first professional contract with the club when he turns 17 on New Year’s Day 2026.
While Maresca was left impressed by the two goal-scoring Brits at his disposal, he admitted he has a favourite when it comes to Blues’ youngsters.
The Chelsea boss isn’t necessarily known for his enthusiasm in press conferences, but when asked about youngster Reggie Walsh, he was warmth personified with a smile plastered across his face.
Walsh, 16, has been training with the first team and was one of a record-breaking eight youngsters to be given a first team shot last season, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get more chances this year with the Blues already facing injuries to some of their key midfielders.
Maresca added: “I like all the academy guys, but Reggie is the one I like more than the rest, he’s my favourite.
“He’s very good, but because they are from the academy, we need to protect them.
“We already have the youngest squad in Premier League history, and last year we gave so many debuts to academy players. But Reggie is doing things that I demand of other players, and does them without me asking him to. That’s why I love Reggie.”
While Brentford may come too soon for the Cobham trio, they are all likely to feature when the Chelsea U21’s take on Ipswich next Saturday at Kingsmeadow.
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