Preview
Chelsea has been firing itself recently into the road to Italy for the NextGen cup with their pacy players and young squad. Our most recent match was against Juventus when they beat them 4-1. Before the Juventus match, Chelsea were able to beat the Barcelona youth 2-0 with 10 men down. Arsenal on the other hand have defeated reigning NextGen champions Inter and recently defeated CSKA as well. Both matches ended 1-0 to Arsenal. Now both meet to fight for a place in the finals. This semi-final is one to watch!
Players to watch out for:
Note: I have only started following Chelsea in their NextGen run recently and I don't know much about the players. Same can be said about the Arsenal players. That is why all the credit for the player profiles goes to the Chelsea blog WeAintGotNoHistory and the Arsenal blog The Short Fuse (link for both blogs will be at the bottom of this post). I'll start off with Chelsea.
Jeremie Boga, midfielder
Anyone who watched the Barcelona game is certainly familiar with Boga at this point. The young Frenchman turned 16 years old in January, and actually debuted for the reserve side in 2012 before ever playing for the U18 team. He's been one of the standout players in the U21 league this season, and could easily find himself in the discussion for a first team bench role before the end of the season if we see some meaningless games.
Lewis Baker, midfielder
Baker will be turning 18 years old in about a month, and has been in sensational form for the U21 side this season. He has been with the academy since 2005, and has been an England regular at every appropriate age group. His decision making is excellent, and he's one of the few players at that age that I've seen that is truly equally capable with the ball on either foot. He'll take the majority of the set pieces for the Blues while likely playing a central midfield role. He's also capable of playing on the wings, and has done so occasionally this season.
Andreas Christensen, CB/RB
Christensen joined the club this season, and has been very impressive thus far. The 16-year old has been a regular in the U21 setup, and easily had his best game of the season against Juventus. He's a big, strong kid with good pace, and he's known for excellent passing and composure. He has also moved into a defensive midfield role several times this season, but with Todd Kane on loan at Blackburn, I'd expect 90 minutes at right back from him tomorrow. Ironically, Arsenal were also chasing Christensen very heavily before he decided to join Chelsea.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, midfielder
Loftus-Cheek will likely pair with Lewis Baker to anchor the Chelsea midfield, and has been featuring regularly for the U18 side this year. Ruben just turned 17 and is a bit more raw than Baker, but he's got the sort of size, speed, and strength combination that is awfully hard to find. He was called up for the England U17 game of Thursday, but was not used in the game.
Alex Kiwomya, winger/striker
Kiwomya is one of the more interesting players in the Chelsea system. The 16-year old is raw, but he's an elite level athlete with absolutely limitless upside. He was among the best sprinters in the world at younger age groups (and holds several British age-group records), despite often being very young for the group he was competing against. He played 23 minutes on Thursday for the England U17 side, so there's a very good chance that he will not be involved on Friday.
Islam Feruz, striker
Feruz has caught a lot of eyes this season, as he has been scoring goals in bunches. The 17-year old lacks size, but he is pacy, explosive, and generally a clinical finisher with either foot. He's another that could be in line for a first team bench at some point this season, and will almost certainly be considered for a Scotland callup at some point now that the team cannot qualify for the World Cup. He generally starts up front alone, and will be a real test for the Arsenal center backs.
AlexBatak
12 years ago
Kickoff: 15:00 CET - March 29th, 2013
Preview
Chelsea has been firing itself recently into the road to Italy for the NextGen cup with their pacy players and young squad. Our most recent match was against Juventus when they beat them 4-1. Before the Juventus match, Chelsea were able to beat the Barcelona youth 2-0 with 10 men down. Arsenal on the other hand have defeated reigning NextGen champions Inter and recently defeated CSKA as well. Both matches ended 1-0 to Arsenal. Now both meet to fight for a place in the finals. This semi-final is one to watch!
Players to watch out for:
Note: I have only started following Chelsea in their NextGen run recently and I don't know much about the players. Same can be said about the Arsenal players. That is why all the credit for the player profiles goes to the Chelsea blog WeAintGotNoHistory and the Arsenal blog The Short Fuse (link for both blogs will be at the bottom of this post). I'll start off with Chelsea.
Jeremie Boga, midfielder
Anyone who watched the Barcelona game is certainly familiar with Boga at this point. The young Frenchman turned 16 years old in January, and actually debuted for the reserve side in 2012 before ever playing for the U18 team. He's been one of the standout players in the U21 league this season, and could easily find himself in the discussion for a first team bench role before the end of the season if we see some meaningless games.
Lewis Baker, midfielder
Baker will be turning 18 years old in about a month, and has been in sensational form for the U21 side this season. He has been with the academy since 2005, and has been an England regular at every appropriate age group. His decision making is excellent, and he's one of the few players at that age that I've seen that is truly equally capable with the ball on either foot. He'll take the majority of the set pieces for the Blues while likely playing a central midfield role. He's also capable of playing on the wings, and has done so occasionally this season.
Andreas Christensen, CB/RB
Christensen joined the club this season, and has been very impressive thus far. The 16-year old has been a regular in the U21 setup, and easily had his best game of the season against Juventus. He's a big, strong kid with good pace, and he's known for excellent passing and composure. He has also moved into a defensive midfield role several times this season, but with Todd Kane on loan at Blackburn, I'd expect 90 minutes at right back from him tomorrow. Ironically, Arsenal were also chasing Christensen very heavily before he decided to join Chelsea.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, midfielder
Loftus-Cheek will likely pair with Lewis Baker to anchor the Chelsea midfield, and has been featuring regularly for the U18 side this year. Ruben just turned 17 and is a bit more raw than Baker, but he's got the sort of size, speed, and strength combination that is awfully hard to find. He was called up for the England U17 game of Thursday, but was not used in the game.
Alex Kiwomya, winger/striker
Kiwomya is one of the more interesting players in the Chelsea system. The 16-year old is raw, but he's an elite level athlete with absolutely limitless upside. He was among the best sprinters in the world at younger age groups (and holds several British age-group records), despite often being very young for the group he was competing against. He played 23 minutes on Thursday for the England U17 side, so there's a very good chance that he will not be involved on Friday.
Islam Feruz, striker
Feruz has caught a lot of eyes this season, as he has been scoring goals in bunches. The 17-year old lacks size, but he is pacy, explosive, and generally a clinical finisher with either foot. He's another that could be in line for a first team bench at some point this season, and will almost certainly be considered for a Scotland callup at some point now that the team cannot qualify for the World Cup. He generally starts up front alone, and will be a real test for the Arsenal center backs.