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Josh McEachran off to Brentford

I wouldn't be too quick to jump on the club for this one. Josh needs to take a good look at himself I'd say.

Lots to learn from this for many people, especially other young players.

 
My point is more that living a nomadic life farmed out from one club to another doesn't help you settle into a style of play and develop. He could have been really very special if given a run in the team but we'll never know. This is is exactly what will happen with Bamford too if he doesn't get a chance this year.

 
Sure but i think with Josh it became an attitude thing more than anything else which is why im not blaming the club for this one. His head was clearly turned by the modern day footballers lifestyle.

Id agree that loan after loan doesnt help. But in the case of Josh he never really did it anywhere. He was given more chances than any youngster i can recall at Chelsea in the past 15 years (albeit that was still minimal) and when he played he was ineffective, Same goes for all his loans too.

Such a waste and the club are right to move on.

 
He had a good season with Boro a couple of years ago but was ineffective for Watford at the start of the 13/14 season which saw his loan cut short. 

He then went to Wigan to revive his season and did okay but nothing spectacular.

This season at Vitesse he's had a lot of injury but again when he did play didn't particularly impress. 

He's 22 now and not showing signs he'll ever be good enough for us so he's looking to kick on with career by moving permanently to a Championship side. That's really not Chelsea's fault. 

We have Loftus-Cheek who at 19 is now showing promise and the club appear to be putting their faith in him that he can push and and be the player we all hoped Josh could be. 

 
ForeverCarefree said:
He had a good season with Boro a couple of years ago but was ineffective for Watford at the start of the 13/14 season which saw his loan cut short. 

He then went to Wigan to revive his season and did okay but nothing spectacular.

This season at Vitesse he's had a lot of injury but again when he did play didn't particularly impress. 

He's 22 now and not showing signs he'll ever be good enough for us so he's looking to kick on with career by moving permanently to a Championship side. That's really not Chelsea's fault. 

We have Loftus-Cheek who at 19 is now showing promise and the club appear to be putting their faith in him that he can push and and be the player we all hoped Josh could be. 
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RLC has something about him and certainly has the physique that is favoured in the modern-day footballer but I honestly don't think he looks as promising as Josh did when he broke into the team under Ancelotti. Think it is ironic that we saw the best of Josh in the handful of first team appearances he had at Chelsea, including CL matches where he was arguably the best player on the pitch. When he went out on loan and stepped down a level, it just didn't happen.

Real shame but he isn't the first promising youngster to fail at Chelsea and he most certainly won't be the last.

 
Nibs said:
RLC has something about him and certainly has the physique that is favoured in the modern-day footballer but I honestly don't think he looks as promising as Josh did when he broke into the team under Ancelotti. Think it is ironic that we saw the best of Josh in the handful of first team appearances he had at Chelsea, including CL matches where he was arguably the best player on the pitch. When he went out on loan and stepped down a level, it just didn't happen.

Real shame but he isn't the first promising youngster to fail at Chelsea and he most certainly won't be the last.
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Completely agree. 

The appearances from RLC so far he's done okay but I haven't seen anything that's made think "sh*t, we've got a world beater on our hands here". 

When Josh made those few appearances he looked extremely mature for his age and was confident and composed on the ball.

Maybe the pace and intensity of Championship football just didn't suit him, who knows? But I think there's been a fair amount of off field goings ons with Josh that also slowed his development too. 

 
Paying a teenager that in reality wasn't even that good absurd sums of money to kick a ball around is what led to this, not the club being negligent with him.

 
Jonty said:
Paying a teenager that in reality wasn't even that good absurd sums of money to kick a ball around is what led to this, not the club being negligent with him.
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You are probably talking about our whole academy here? RLC was reported to be on £1.7m a year at 17. It's madness.

 
Nibs said:
You are probably talking about our whole academy here? RLC was reported to be on £1.7m a year at 17. It's madness.
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Some can handle the pressures and responsibilities better than others, it probably has a lot to do with who you get mixed up with.

The only way the club can be held responsible for this is perhaps by saying that if he'd stayed with the reserves instead of going out on loan we might have been able to keep a closer eye on him, but really he's old enough to take responsibility for his own decisions.

 
ForeverCarefree said:
Completely agree. 

The appearances from RLC so far he's done okay but I haven't seen anything that's made think "sh*t, we've got a world beater on our hands here". 

When Josh made those few appearances he looked extremely mature for his age and was confident and composed on the ball.

Maybe the pace and intensity of Championship football just didn't suit him, who knows? But I think there's been a fair amount of off field goings ons with Josh that also slowed his development too. 
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If a player can't handle playing in the championship then he's not good enough for us. Not a fan of the argument that the championship is a bit too physical for players just graduating from the academy. If you're good enough to play in the PL you should be able to find a way to play your game. 

 
Carefree94 said:
If a player can't handle playing in the championship then he's not good enough for us. Not a fan of the argument that the championship is a bit too physical for players just graduating from the academy. If you're good enough to play in the PL you should be able to find a way to play your game. 
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When you look at how average or even poorly the likes of Ross Barkley and Harry Kane were when they played on loan in the Championship compared to how they've ended up performing for their parent clubs I do think there is an argument to be made. 

 
ForeverCarefree said:
When you look at how average or even poorly the likes of Ross Barkley and Harry Kane were when they played on loan in the Championship compared to how they've ended up performing for their parent clubs I do think there is an argument to be made
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4 goals in the 13 appearances (Barkley Wiki stat) isn't to shabby for an 18 yr old. I didn't watch their games in the championship but from their stats it looks like they made a decent impact.

I would argue that the better performances they've had at their parent clubs is down to the fact that they had matured/improved while out on loan and also that they are playing alongside better players which obviously makes them look better, which I guess gives creedence to your argument about physicality. However, I don't they would've been given their chance if they hadn't made an impact out on loan. I watched a lot of Josh's games on loan at middlesborough and he looked pretty solid but i dont think he did anything to warrant being called up. 

 
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ForeverCarefree said:
When you look at how average or even poorly the likes of Ross Barkley and Harry Kane were when they played on loan in the Championship compared to how they've ended up performing for their parent clubs I do think there is an argument to be made. 
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Good examples FC and spot on. You would think that decent players should be able to play at any level and the lower the level the better they will look compared to the other players but it rarely works like that.

I recall watching Joe Cole play in a Chelsea reserve game and thinking he was going to run rings round the opposition and make them look silly when in fact he looked the worst player on the pitch!

 
TheFunkeyGibbon said:
My point is more that living a nomadic life farmed out from one club to another doesn't help you settle into a style of play and develop. He could have been really very special if given a run in the team but we'll never know. This is is exactly what will happen with Bamford too if he doesn't get a chance this year.
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I 100% agree with this. It's easy to say that paying him so much at such a young age is what prevented him working his nuts off and really kicking on, which may well have been the case, but you can certainly argue that sending youngsters out to places where they feel like fish out of water is very unsettling and not always good for their development. He didn't have a good word to say about his time at Swansea under Rodgers, and his other loans haven't gone very well, although the Vitesse coach did sing his praises.

I really think he is an exceptional talent and I am really sorry we won't see him achieve his potential with us. He's still young enough to make it somewhere else, and another London club could be the best place for him.

 
Nibs said:
Good examples FC and spot on. You would think that decent players should be able to play at any level and the lower the level the better they will look compared to the other players but it rarely works like that.

I recall watching Joe Cole play in a Chelsea reserve game and thinking he was going to run rings round the opposition and make them look silly when in fact he looked the worst player on the pitch!
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When did you watch joey play? 

 
Carefree94 said:
When did you watch joey play? 
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I'd love to give you something exact as Joey was my absolute hero, but I struggle to recall last season never mind when Joey was still here!!

Seem to recall it was against Arsenal though and think it was during Carlo's reign. All I remember was being chuffed Joey was in the side and looking forward to him dazzling..............and he didn't!

 
Nibs said:
I'd love to give you something exact as Joey was my absolute hero, but I struggle to recall last season never mind when Joey was still here!!

Seem to recall it was against Arsenal though and think it was during Carlo's reign. All I remember was being chuffed Joey was in the side and looking forward to him dazzling..............and he didn't!
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Haha fair enough mate! Joey is an absolute hero of mine. Was gutted when he left. Just want to point out that was when he had a really bad injury so maybe that affected his performance. That injury really killed his career. 

 
Carefree94 said:
Haha fair enough mate! Joey is an absolute hero of mine. Was gutted when he left. Just want to point out that was when he had a really bad injury so maybe that affected his performance. That injury really killed his career. 
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I know. He's still in my all-time favourite 5 CFC players - vying for No.1 with Pat Nevin!

I was as gutted when Joey left as I was when wee Pat left. He was brilliant for us and one of the best players I have ever seen when it comes to just sheer natural ability and skill. Folk talk fondly of the Mourinho side with Duffer, Robben and Joey but on his day, for me, Joey was the pick of the three. And of course he absolutely loved Chelsea and the fans and still does.

Would have been great to have a Joe Cole at his peak now playing in the same side as Hazard - although he would no doubt still get a bollocking from Mourinho!

 
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