Graham Potter has hailed the potential of Carney Chukwuemeka after his promising extended cameo for Chelsea last night.
The teenage midfielder made his second senior appearance for his boyhood club against Brentford, replacing first-time starter Armando Broja for the final 28 minutes of a hard-fought but goalless Premier League derby draw in west London.
While Chukwuemeka was unable to help Chelsea find that elusive winning goal, his bright performance off the bench provoked much excitement about his future at Stamford Bridge after arriving from Aston Villa in a £20million transfer over the summer.
Along with fellow youngster Cesare Casadei, another new arrival from Inter Milan, the 19-year-old is seen as part of a potential midfield succession plan in the event that Jorginho and N’Golo Kante both leave the club when their respective contracts expire next summer.
It had been thought that Chukwuemeka could be loaned out by Chelsea in January in order to make room for a new midfielder with unused loanee Denis Zakaria potentially making an early return to Juventus, though more encouraging senior displays like last night’s may force a swift rethink.
Asked what made him think the England Under-20 international was ready for a more extended appearance at Brentford, Chelsea boss Potter answered: “Well, if you look at these attributes, he’s a big powerful boy that can run and run away from people, and in a game like Brentford, you’re often in duels and need physicality, and I thought he and Christian [Pulisic] did well when they came on. They affected the game. That was just the thinking.
“He’s a young player, but he’s got exciting attributes. We just need to help him reach his potential because his potential is exciting.”
Chukwuemeka will hope to continue to press for first-team minutes as Chelsea face a hectic pre-World Cup fixture list across all competitions, with games against Manchester United, Red Bull Salzburg, Brighton, Dinamo Zagreb, Arsenal, Manchester City and Newcastle all still to come before domestic and continental football is suspended for the inaugural winter tournament in Qatar next month.
