Chesterfield's academy players travelled down to Cobham on Saturday after being invited by the Blues for a series of training sessions with the Chelsea academy.
The event included all age groups from the under-8s upwards, with 30 coaches making the trip to London for what has been described as a 'groundbreaking' event.
The young players involved were provided with lunch at the training complex before watching the senior side take on the reigning European champions on Saturday evening.
Neil Cluxton, the Chesterfield academy manager, said of the event: “It is a fantastic opportunity for us to be involved with a top Premier League club.
“I would like to thank Chelsea for providing us with this opportunity. I am also grateful to everyone in the academy involved in helping to organise the event.”
Chesterfield find themselves vying for promotion from the National League this season, despite having been a League One side as recently as the 2016/17 campaign before back-to-back relegations saw them dumped out of the Football League.
It's not every day a youngster in the academy of a National League side is afforded the opportunity to train at the home of the Champions League holders, and it's an experience they'll no doubt never forget no matter how successful a professional career they go on to have.
Chelsea's academy system has been regularly lauded this season as a number of Cobham graduates have made the seamless transition into senior football.
Inviting Chesterfield's academy down to west London is not only a classy gesture but one that shows the growing strength of the Blues' academy setup.
The Spireites’ coaching staff will no doubt have been keen to pick a few tips during their trip to the capital, with the National League side given the chance to learn from the best.
Youth players are a huge part of most clubs - just look at Arsenal right now. Despite being one of the biggest clubs in England, the Gunners have relied heavily on the quality of both Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka as Mikel Arteta looks to guide his team back to the top table of European football.
Chelsea have often been criticised by rival fans and pundits down the years for the extraordinary sums of money they've spent, though there's been a clear shift at the club lately as they aim to give youth a chance.
In opening their doors to the Chesterfield youth teams, the club have once again shown their class. Who knows, in a few years we might see a mini Reece James or a mini Trevoh Chalobah lining up for Chesterfield.
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