Chelsea will travel out to the Czech Republic this afternoon ahead of their Europa League clash with Slavia Prague on Thursday.
The Blues were paired with Prague in the last eight of the competition, with the away leg first in the Sinobo Stadium tomorrow night.
Before that though, there was a final training session in England ahead of the clash.
As per UEFA rules, members of the media were allowed to go down and watch 15 minutes of open training ahead of the clash, and Maurizio Sarri sprung something of a surprise.
It is not a surprise to see young players called up to first team training ahead of matches in Europe, but what may surprise some supporters are the names of those youngsters who got the nod today.
Previously the likes of Ethan Ampadu, Conor Gallagher and Billy Gilmour have got the call, but today two new faces were in action.
The first two bodies out on the Cobham training pitches were unfamiliar faces for many. Richard Nartey and Ruben Sammut jogged out from indoors tight together nudging a ball between themselves towards the plethora of cones and poles that had already been laid out.
They had quite the wait for anyone else and passed the ball close together utilising each part of their boots to keep warm in the blustery conditions. And they kept on waiting, until eventually the first team squad began to emerge, the Premier League stars straying to the pitch that the Blues academy duo were not on.
Step up Cesar Azpilicueta, who trundled across to shake hands with both and to cajole them across in time for the customary rondo. The friendly atmosphere certainly stopped them looking out of place and allowed them to display the high level of comfort on the ball that Chelsea produce at all levels.
Nartey is a 20-year-old ball-playing defender who featured regularly during Chelsea's treble-winning U18 season in 2016/17.
Sammut, meanwhile, is a 21-year-old deep-lying midfielder who has worked his way through the age groups at Chelsea, eventually playing an integral role in the U18 side that won three consecutive FA Youth Cups from 2014 to 2016, before captaining the U23 team.
0 Comments