Chelsea have already sold a bigger talent than Guehi

When it comes to the best academies in world football, Chelsea’s Cobham ranks right near the very top.

The Blues have developed an army of incredible players over the years, and not just attackers either, as they’ve helped create some top-quality defenders like John Terry, Reece James, Fikayo Tomori and Trevoh Chalobah.

Unfortunately, as the club is prone to selling youngsters, they have also missed out on some of the gems they’ve produced, with Marc Guehi being one of the most notable when it comes to defenders.

Yet, there is another international that Chelsea were was perhaps too happy to move on, someone who looks set to be a future England star alongside Guehi.

Guehi’s rise to England international

Guehi spent most of his childhood and teenage years in Chelsea’s academy system, and while he did make two competitive appearances for the club, his first real taste of senior football came when he joined Swansea City on loan in January 2020.

The Abidjan-born ace would rejoin the Swans for the entirety of the 20/21 campaign, and by the time he left South Wales, he had made 59 appearances for the club.

Unfortunately, first-team football was once again an unlikely prospect upon his return to Stamford Bridge, so instead of going out on another loan, the Englishman opted to move south of the river and join Crystal Palace permanently.

As we all know, that was an excellent decision for his own development, as since then he’s made 161 appearances for the Eagles, 135 of which have been in the Premier League, and even captained them to FA Cup glory.

Moreover, his performances at Selhurst Park were enough to catch Gareth Southgate’s eye, and he won his first senior England cap in March 2022.

Since then, the 25-year-old has become a key part of the Three Lions setup, winning another 24 caps and being one of the nation’s most impressive players in Euro 2024.

This international break has been another positive one for the defensive titan as he helped to keep two clean sheets and even scored his first England goal away to Serbia last night while providing the assist for Ezri Konsa’s strike.

More than that, though, he really showed why he’s one of the best ball-playing centre-backs in the game by completing 72 of 74 passes, taking 83 touches, playing three key passes, losing the ball just twice and creating one big chance.

In all, it would be fair to say Chelsea got it wrong selling Guehi, and unfortunately, it looks like they may have made a similar mistake with another player.

The future England great sold by Chelsea

Given the nature of how Chelsea approach the transfer market, they are always going to let one or two potential stars slip through their fingers, and that might be the case with Lewis Hall.

Like Guehi, the Slough-born defender came up through Cobham, playing for the club’s U18s, U21s and UEFA Youth League sides and even making 12 appearances for the first-team.

However, despite having just signed a seven-year contract, the boyhood Newcastle United fan moved to the Magpies on a season-long loan deal with an obligation to buy for £35m in August 2023.

He endured a slow start to life at St James’ Park, but he was finally given a starting berth last season, and before injuring his ankle, he looked elite.

For example, in just 27 league appearances, totalling 2193 minutes, he was able to amass five assists, which might not sound like an outrageous amount, but given his age, it’s an impressive early indication.

Moreover, he put up some seriously impressive underlying numbers.

According to FBref, he ranked in the top 5% of full-backs in the league last season for progressive passing distance and shots blocked, the top 8% for dribblers challenged, the top 10% for long passes completed, the top 12% for crosses and more, all per 90.

In other words, his numbers painted the picture of a progressive full-back who is comfortable in attacking scenarios but is also no slouch when it comes to the defensive side of the game.

It’s likely this brilliant combination that saw him called up to England duty and win his first two senior caps under Lee Carsley last November.

It’s also likely why respected analyst Ben Mattinson predicted that in the long term, it’ll be a “battle” between him and Myles Lewis-Skelly for England’s starting left-back role under Tuchel.

Ultimately, Chelsea have got plenty right in the transfer market, but just as selling Guehi was a mistake, it looks like selling Hall will be considered the same, especially if he continues to play so well “at the highest level,” per Mattinson.