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With international tournaments now behind us, the focus shifts back to club football as various players return to their respective clubs for pre-season. Chelsea also have several players returning to the club for the start of pre-season, with the majority coming back from loan spells.
Thomas Tuchel would like to build on his Champions League-winning squad from last season and will certainly look to evaluate the players at his disposal before making any transfer decisions. With many of the first-team players heavily involved in international tournaments, they will likely be omitted from early pre-season, providing an opportunity for the fringe players to impress Tuchel.
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Chelsea will definitely look to offload players this season to accommodate any new signings that might come in. Here, we take a look at the 5 Chelsea players who need to impress in pre-season:
#5 Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Ruben Loftus-Cheek was a regular starter under Maurizio Sarri in the 2018/19 season and was also part of England's World Cup squad that reached the semi-finals in 2018. But a ruptured Achilles tendon injury on the eve of the Europa League final in 2019 has completely derailed his career.
He was pretty much out for most of the 2019/20 season and subsequently loaned to Fulham in order to gain more minutes. But the 25-year old failed to make an impression and had to settle for a bit-part at Craven Cottage.
Now back at Chelsea, the midfielder will certainly look to return to his best and impress Tuchel to regain his spot in the first team. The German tactician is already a huge admirer of Loftus-Cheek, even comparing him to Chelsea legend Michael Ballack in an interview.
Billy Gilmour's loan move to Norwich has opened up a spot in Chelsea's midfield, but Loftus-Cheek knows that Tuchel will demand an improvement to have any chance of getting a first-team role.
With a lot of competition already in midfield and potential young talent coming through, Loftus-Cheek knows that it's now or never for him at Chelsea as he will be determined to prove himself to Tuchel, despite interest from other clubs in Europe.
#4 Armando Broja
With Olivier Giroud reportedly on the verge of joining AC Milan and Tammy Abraham's future uncertain, Tuchel could look to use 19-year-old Armando Broja to provide depth in the striker's department.
Broja quickly came through the ranks at Chelsea and was one of the star performers in the youth set-up. He was rewarded for his performances and was sent out on loan last season to Vitesse in the Dutch first division. He had an excellent season there, scoring 10 goals in the process with an xG (expected goals) of 7.00 and was integral in helping Vitesse finish 4th in the table, their highest position since 2013.
Broja has already made his senior debut for Chelsea against Everton in the last game before lockdown and has already made six appearances for the Albanian national team.
There have been reports that Chelsea have already started negotiating a new contract with the youngster as they look to secure his future. Broja will definitely want to impress Tuchel in pre-season to continue his development at Chelsea and be a part of the first-team.
#3 Ross Barkley
Ross Barkley was rated as one of the most talented youngsters at Everton and seemed destined to become a star for both club and country. But the England international has failed to live up to expectations since his move to Chelsea. The 27-year-old was sent on loan to Aston Villa last season after a disappointing spell at Stamford Bridge.
Barkley made a bright start to his loan spell but injuries halted his progress as he was forced to sit on the sidelines and subsequently lost his place in Dean Smith's side. Villa eventually decided against making the loan deal permanent and instead signed Emi Buendia from Norwich City.
Barkley's injury struggles will make it difficult for Tuchel to select him over other players. He will be behind the likes of Mateo Kovacic, N'Golo Kante, Jorginho and Mason Mount in the pecking order.
However, Barkley's movement and ability to link-up with the front three could make him a good backup option in the squad. It is not yet known what the future holds for Barkley but he will certainly look to impress Tuchel and revive his football career for both club and country.
#2 Ethan Ampadu
Ethan Ampadu spent the entirety of last season with relegated side Sheffield United in the Premier League and will be hoping that the valuable playing time he has gained there will put him into serious consideration under Thomas Tuchel.
Ampadu played more than 2,450 minutes in all competitions last season and played in different roles - mainly as a centre-back and in defensive midfield, but also sometimes in central midfield. When compared to other centre-backs, his 4.35 tackles and interceptions per 90 were in the top 5% while his 1.51 carries in the final third per 90 were in the top 4%.
Ampadu's flexibility could prove attractive to Tuchel while setting up his 3-4-3 or 4-3-3 formation next season to plug the holes in midfield and he could also be used as a backup option for Jorginho or any of the centre-backs given the number of games Chelsea could play next season.
It is now up to Amapadu to impress Tuchel in pre-season and make him aware of his skills and prove that he is ready to play at a club like Chelsea.
#1 Malang Sarr
Malang Sarr will also be returning to Chelsea for pre-season after completing his loan spell at Porto. The 22-year-old had joined Chelsea from Nice last summer on a free transfer and was immediately loaned out to Porto.
At Nice, Sarr made over a hundred appearances and was an integral part of the French side's defense. But at FC Porto, he did not see much game time and only made 19 appearances throughout the season, while also playing for Porto's second string side. It was a disappointing loan spell for the youngster, hardly giving him any chance of breaking into the first team at Stamford Bridge.
But with most of Chelsea's first-choice centre-backs not available at the start of pre-season due to their international commitments, Sarr will have a chance to impress Tuchel and with reports of Zouma being linked with a move away from Chelsea, there will definitely be a gap to fill in the centre-back department.
