Mauricio Pochettino has heard great things about Chelsea 21-year-old
Ian Maatsen is set to get a chance during pre-season to impress at Chelsea.
That is according to well-respected journalist Simon Phillips.
Phillips has reported on his Substack that Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino has heard great things about Ian Maatsen, who was promoted last season during a very successful loan spell at Burnley.
It is understood that Pochettino wants to give the 21-year-old defender a shot now he’s back with the Blues this summer.
He adds that the Dutch left-back has been training with the main group at the start of pre-season, with the squad split into two by the manager.
Phillips has claimed on his Substack that Ben Chilwell is set to be Chelsea’s first-choice left-back going into the 2023/24 season.
Therefore, Maatsen is battling it out with Marc Cucurella to be the replacement full-back in the squad.
So, will we soon promote another of our youngsters to the main group?
In our view, he’s definitely got a chance if he performs well during pre-season and shows the kind of individual form he did at Turf Moor last year.
Maatsen explained a few months ago that he had held no conversations with then-Chelsea boss Graham Potter (Burnley Express).
It’s great to hear he’s now back from a season-long loan and in contention under Pochettino, though.
He was superb last season as an attack-minded left-back in Burnley’s title-winning side in the Championship, scoring four goals and creating six assists in 39 league appearances.
We love hearing that Pochettino is living up to the reputation of giving young talents a real chance.
