Chelsea's current defence might be struggling, with three of the four players in Thomas Tuchel's backline against Southampton being 31 years old or more, but the longevity in place to counter that is growing. Not only has 21-year-old Wesley Fofana joined the club this summer, but he has also come in alongside many other talented youngsters.
It has been led mainly by Head of Youth Development Neil Bath, who is recruiting not only for the continued short-term success of the academy at Cobham. Todd Boehly will hope they can build a more consistent pathway for promising young players.
Already in the first team set-up this season has been Armando Broja, Harvey Vale, Carney Chukwuemeka and Billy Gilmour, though the use of those players by Tuchel has only demonstrated the great gap that still has to be overcome for the players to have a future in Chelsea blue.
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As much as signing experienced pros like Kalidou Koulibaly and Raheem Sterling have been important to help Tuchel maintain his desired quality, investments in Fofana and Marc Cucurella blend well for the immediate and long-term future of the club.
Now, with a big money move late in the window being pursued for RB Leipzig centre-back Joska Gvardiol, there is depth to the defence that hasn't been there. The Croatian defender is highly-rated and seen as an aggressive Antonio Rudiger replacement, with the CIES Football Observatory's Impact Score ranking him as the best player born in 2002 in the world at the moment.
Although Simon Johnson from the Athletic is reporting that Chelsea are considering waiting until January to finalise a deal for Gvardiol, this move has only recently come into the spotlight as being viable after his huge asking price was revealed earlier in the window. Gvardiol is just one part of a big move from Boehly. On the CIES list of players born between 2000 and 2004, there are a host of Chelsea targets, players and former players scattered around.
It indicates not only the quality coming from within but also the direction that the new owners want to drive the club in. On the list is Peterborough United's Ronnie Edwards, someone who football.london believes Chelsea have made two attempts to sign this summer and will go in again before the window closes, Conor Gallagher, new signing Gabriel Slonina, current target Arsen Zakharyan, Tino Livramento, Anthony Gordon, Marc Guehi and Ethan Ampadu.
Although Ampadu doesn't look to have a future at Chelsea and Guehi is unlikely to return, Livramento will be available again next summer. Interest in Zakharyan is high, and a deal could yet be reached during this window. Just signing the players doesn't mean that they will go on to be successes, but Boehly's backing of the important Cobham infrastructure is a big aspect of why fans are still optimistic despite the current malaise.
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