Chelsea’s assistant first-team coach Steve Holland has praised a host of Chelsea U21’s who were with the England squad that won the Toulon Tournament on Sunday.
The Young Lions, managed by Gareth Southgate, came out victorious against France in a 2-1 winning final on Sunday, thanks to goals from Chelsea academy stars Lewis Baker – who has spent this season on loan at Vitesse – and Ruben Loftus-Cheek who has been with the first team this season.
During the tournament, Baker had netted an impressive four goals, whilst Loftus-Cheek bagged himself three.
Holland, who was Southgate’s assistant for the tournament, firmly believes that the Chelsea youngsters can be proud of their performances at the tournament and take away immense pride. Speaking on the club’s official website, he said:
From a Chelsea perspective, Lewis Baker won the Golden Boot, which was the award for scoring most goals in the competition. We played him in a role on the left side of a diamond and that gave him a lot of freedom to attack. It’s a natural ability he has always shown he has in the academy, making and scoring goals, and he did very well to achieve that honour. Nathaniel Chalobah was voted third best player of the tournament and Ruben Loftus-Cheek was the player of the tournament. Add to that John Swift managed to be involved in the final, as well as two of the previous four games, and Kasey Palmer made his debut at that level. All five can be pleased with their contributions; it’s good for English football and really good for Chelsea as well.
It was well spoken about just how well the Chelsea stars played for the England side throughout the tournament, and here’s hoping that the youngsters will take this experience away with them to help them push on to gain a first-team spot in West London.
Hopefully, Antonio Conte was watching to see the talent he may have at his possession next season.
