Why Chelsea youth captain Charlie Holland, 14, joined first-team training today
harlie Holland was a surprise inclusion to Chelsea’s training session on Thursday, which prompted intrigue among fans as they pondered a potential debut against Nottingham Forest on the weekend.
The 14-year-old took part in the workout alongside the likes of N’Golo Kante and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang despite being almost three years the junior of the Blues’ youngest-ever Premier League player – Jody Morris in 1996.
Earlier this month, Holland captained Chelsea’s Under-14 sides to victory in the Albert Phelan Cup South, with a 5-0 hammering of Fulham in the final.
That is said to have prompted the club’s decision to promote the youngster for a day of training amongst the seniors.
However, Holland is not set for first-team involvement anytime soon.
Instead his call-up could partly be explained by the absence of both the Under-21 and Under-18 Chelsea teams, whose players are routinely brought into senior workouts to fill gaps and for experience.
The U21s season is finished and the U18s are in Germany for end-of-season friendlies against Wolfsburg and RB Leipzig.
Younger age groups including the U14s are at Cobham on a daily basis for activities including schooling anyway, as highlighted by the Chelsea Youth Twitter account, and therefore in prime position for such a chance to impress at this moment.
