Centre-back Xavier Mbuyamba has stressed his delight after marking his debut for Chelsea's Under-23s with a goal during their 3-1 win over Southampton last night.
After falling behind to Kazeem Olaigbe's 54th minute opener, the Blues responded through strikes from Faustino Anjorin, Silko Thomas and Mbuyamba to seal a return to winning ways after back-to-back draws.
Whilst it was a big boost for the team to seal a return to winning ways, the story of the night belonged to talented Dutchman Mbuyamba.
After joining Chelsea on a free transfer last summer following his departure from Barcelona, the youngster, who has been dubbed as the 'new Virgil van Dijk', finally won his debut for the club after a long spell on the sidelines through injury.
The defender joined the Blues last August and was immediately struck down by a long-term knee injury.
The 19-year-old underwent keyhole surgery and began his recovery programme in September, aiming to miss around four months of action.
However, after making a return to training in January and eyeing up his first appearance for the Blues, the youngster was advised to undergo another minor operation on his knee.
Since undergoing his second operation since joining Chelsea, Mbuyamba has been working hard at the Blues' Cobham training base and has now finally earned his first appearance for the club's development squad.
Although he didn't start the win over the Saints last night, Mbuyamba stepped off the bench with just under 25 minutes of the contest remaining and just five minutes later he was celebrating his first Blues goal.
The defender connected with an in-swinging free-kick from the right flank and after two bites of the cherry he fired the ball home.
Having marked his long-awaited Blues debut in such fashion, the defender soon took to social media to react.
"The comeback is greater than the setback," he wrote on his Instagram page. "This is a mental game, that's why I have already won.
"Made the Chelsea debut I have been dreaming about for months. With my first goal.
"What a feeling!"
Mbuyamba will now be hoping he can earn his first start in Chelsea colours before the Under-23s' season reaches its conclusion. They have four fixtures remaining between now and the end of the campaign, starting with a clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
The Blues youngsters are currently fourth in the Premier League 2 table, three points behind second-placed Blackburn Rovers.
