Chelsea have reportedly made the decision that academy starlet Josh Acheampong will not be available for selection for either the first-team or Under-21s until he signs a new contract to stay at the club.
There are naturally two sides to the story. According to the Athletic, Acheampong has been told that his omission from both the senior and junior squads in recent weeks is due to talks over a new deal at the club stalling, with plenty of clubs said to be keeping an eye on the 18-year-old – including Real Madrid.
The Blues are naturally not keen on allowing players to run their deals down into the final 12 months of their contract with no resolution on the cards – such instances have seen Mason Mount and Conor Gallagher leave the club in consecutive summers.
But their methods of dealing with the players in that situation are under the microscope with the latest decision. Acheampong, on the face of it, has done nothing wrong. His current contract with the club runs until 2026 – the maximum he was able to sign as an academy star when agreeing a his first professional deal in January of this year.
But, with talks still ongoing and there still said to be hopes that an agreement can be reached, the club have decided the young star should not be representing the club on the pitch. The Blues have shown they are willing to give debuts to plenty of young stars over recent seasons, but holding them to ransom by relinquishing even the possibility of them getting football is a huge mis-step.
Some will say it is just the club taking a strong stance, but the way they have dealt with their academy graduates in recent years runs a serious risk of doing long-term damage to their standing.
The reality is that Chelsea’s academy is rightly seen as one of the best – and most competitive – in the south of England. But if families start to see treatment that the likes of Gallagher, Trevoh Chalobah – each in the academy for over a decade – have seen recently, it could definitely lead them to question an offer from Chelsea over, say, Fulham or Tottenham.
Tariq Lamptey, Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall; just some of the players who have left the club over the last few years, whether it be due to lack of a pathway into the first team or that the club sees them as more saleable assets. On the books, they are good financial decisions for the club.
But forcing players like Gallagher to train away from the rest of the team; not allowing Acheampong to be selected with just under two years remaining on his current deal? The club need to consider what message this sends to prospective players – loyalty is not a one-way street.
