Chelsea’s squad crisis gives Thomas Tuchel perfect chance to unleash the ‘next Van Dijk’

Wolves v Chelsea Match Pictures

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Chelsea have been ravaged by injuries and Covid in recent weeks but their festive calendar has continued with Brentford up next tonight in the Carabao Cup. But Thomas Tuchel has a hidden trick up his sleeve with one player compared to the next Virgil van Dijk.

Xavier Mbuyamba might just get a chance to prove to everyone why he is being called the next Van Dijk tonight.

Chelsea face Brentford in the Carabao Cup tonight with a number of top first-team players missing, including Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and N’Golo Kante.

Nevertheless, the Blues are ready to name several academy stars in their side to bolster their numbers after their troubles at the weekend.

In a 0-0 draw against Wolves at Molineux on Sunday, Tuchel named a bench with just four outfield players on it – as well as two goalkeepers.

But in a west London derby tonight, some youngsters could get the chance to shine.

Included could be Mbuyamba, who joined from Barcelona in the summer of 2020 and has been wowing coaches in training.

Aged 19 and standing at 6ft5, the Dutchman has jaw dropping ability on the ball that belies his age and size.

It has drawn comparisons to Liverpool star Van Dijk, who has been one of the best defenders in the world over the past four years.

But whether or not the teenager gets a chance to strut his stuff at the Brentford Community Stadium tonight remains to be seen.

It has not been an easy ride for the defender, who has only recently recovered from an anterior cruciate ligament injury that ruled him out for much of last campaign.

With such a problem, it takes a long time to get back into the groove but the signs are that he has recovered well.

Regardless, Tuchel might have no choice but to throw Mbuyamba into the deep end with so many problems himself.

Trevor Chalobah and Andreas Christensen have been ruled out through injury while the German coach will be wary of overworking Thiago Silva.

That would leave Cesar Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger as the only remaining defenders while Reece James can also play there.

As well as Mbuyamba, several other youngsters well called into first-team training looking to make an impression.

They include the highly-rated pairing of Charlie Webster and Harvey Vale, both attacking midfielders, as well as Josh Brooking – a centre-back and right-back.

Xavier Simons, Jayden Wareham, Alfie Gilchrist and Dion Rankine were also a handful of others to be involved and could well be named in Chelsea’s new-look squad tonight.

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