Chelsea fans could see several new faces when the Blues take on Los Angeles FC in the Club World Cup on Monday evening.
Liam Delap, Dario Essugo, Mamadou Sarr and Mike Penders have all been included in Chelsea’s squad for the tournament.
Delap has been speaking about Chelsea’s quality ahead of the team’s group opener, and supporters will be keen to see their new striker make his debut.
But there is also reason to be excited about Essugo and the prospect of the 20-year-old making his own debut at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Enzo Maresca has ‘good feeling’ about Dario Essugo
Chelsea have added Essugo to their midfield, and the Portuguese is already impressing manager Enzo Maresca.
Speaking to Chelsea’s official website about the former Sporting Lisbon player, Maresca said: “Dario Essugo, I have a good feeling about him, and he is working well with us. And Mike Penders is also another talented player.”
Andrey Santos is another midfielder who will also be looking to make his competitive debut for Chelsea.
The Brazilian joined Chelsea from Vasco da Gama in 2023 but has only played in friendlies so far. He had a very successful loan at Strasbourg last season, though, so is in line to receive an opportunity under Maresca.
Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez played a lot of games in the previous campaign, so the arrival of Essugo and return of Santos should ease the load on them a bit.
Enzo Maresca still urging for caution with Dario Essugo
While Maresca likes what he is seeing from Essugo so far, the Chelsea head coach has made it clear that the Portugal Under-21 international and Sarr still need to be given time.
Maresca spoke about Essugo, Sarr and Delap last week, saying: “They are three talents. I trained Delap in the Under 21s of [Manchester] City: he already has experience of the Premier League, he was relegated with Ipswich but he scored 12 goals. And he is a strong guy.
“The other two will need time: they are both born in 2005, we will have to understand when they will be ready but in perspective they are very strong players.”
Both youngsters have shown a lot of promise over the last year, though. If Chelsea develop them properly, then the Blues could have two exceptional footballers on their hands.
Neither player is even 21 yet; they have a lot of potential that Chelsea must now help them fulfil. And the same can be said about many others in this very young and talented Chelsea squad.
