Seven players we can’t believe are still at Chelsea: Van Ginkel, Kalas, Kane

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Planet Football
5th July 2018

It’s a well-known fact that Chelsea are a club which likes to bring in a player or two, to the point where you might forget who’s actually there and who isn’t.

They’re sort of like the club equivalent of your mother. They buy and keep things they don’t need because they’ll ‘come in handy’, then lo and behold you find them three years later in a pile next to 2004’s Christmas cards.

Taking a closer look at Chelsea’s squad, we’ve picked out the players that we can’t quite believe are still at Stamford Bridge.

Marco Van Ginkel

First thing’s first, how you get to be known as Marco when your first name is actually Wulfert Cornelius is a complete mystery.

Van Ginkel joined Chelsea in 2013 and was hailed as the next Frank Lampard by then-Vitesse boss Peter Bosz but has appeared just twice due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

Since then, the midfielder has gone on various loan spells, most recently at PSV Eindhoven last season, where he netted 16 goals in 33 appearances.

He’s still contracted until 2020, so maybe we will finally see the 25-year old in blue again over the next two seasons.

Marco Van Ginkel last played for Chelsea in 2013 and still has a two-year contract https://t.co/tSNZ3uiUms

— Kunle Ajao (@Lord_KIA) July 3, 2018

Tomas Kalas

Whilst still registered at Stamford Bridge, Czech defender Kalas has established himself in the Championship, as well as at the heart of the Czech Republic defence, thanks to successful spells with Middlesbrough and Fulham.

Kalas missed out on a trip to Wembley with Boro in 2015, with the nature of his short-term loan meaning he wouldn’t see out the season despite playing a crucial part in their run to the play-off final.

However, he made up for that disappointment last season by helping Fulham to promotion, again via the play-offs.

Michael Hector

English-born defender Hector already has an impressive number of clubs on his CV, having turned out for 15 so far.

Most of those are loans which, unusually, came before he signed for Chelsea.

Hector is another, like Kalas, that has established himself as a promising defender with spells at Eintracht Frankfurt and Reading allowing him to display his ability.

Lucas Piazon

Any Football Manager fan who’s cut their teeth in the Championship will recognise this name immediately, mainly because he’s ALWAYS on the loan list at the start of a game.

The Brazilian forward has been on a European tour since joining the west Londoners from Sao Paolo in 2011, turning out for Malaga, Vitesse, Eintracht Frankfurt, Reading and Fulham.

Things haven’t quite gone his way in English football yet, though 10 goals in 56 appearances at Fulham suggested a change in fortune was just around the corner.

Hopes of that were dashed temporarily, however, when Piazon suffered a fracture-dislocation of his ankle at Elland Road early last season, forcing him to sit out the majority of the 2017-18 campaign.

#Chelsea loaned player Lucas Piazon on his future “My desire is to be playing. Go to a place where you do not play, stay on the bench, not being in the match-day squad, it’s not cool. I’m 24 years old and what matters is playing either in Fulham or elsewhere." #CFC pic.twitter.com/liui1Z0GIl

— The Blues (@TheBlues___) May 6, 2018

Todd Kane

Kane has been in the Chelsea youth set-up since 2001, joining at under-8 level and progressing to senior level, though he’s yet to make an appearance for the club.

Instead the right-back has been sent to various clubs across England, the most recent being Oxford United last season, with a couple of Dutch sides thrown in.

Another player whose development has been hindered by an ACL injury, suffering the blow during his time with NEC Nijmegen in 2016.

Kenneth Omeruo

FourFourTwo once described Omeruo as “the best Chelsea player you’ve never heard of”, and it seems quite an apt title.

Not many players can establish themselves at the heart of the defence for their country at the age of 19 and not make it into a top team.

Signed in January 2012 from Standard Liege, Omeuo is yet to pull on a Chelsea shirt, with his first move being an immediate loan to ADO Den Haag.

This was followed by moves to Middlesbrough, Kasimpasa and Alanyaspor, and he even impressed for Nigeria at this summer’s World Cup.

Matt Miazga

After making a name for himself in the MLS, Miazga left New York Red Bulls for London in January 2016 following a string of impressive performances.

And that form seemed to transfer over the pond, for his debut at least, as he made up an impressive part of a back four that shut out Aston Villa in a 4-0 win.

His second game, however, wasn’t as successful, as he was dragged off at half-time against Swansea City, never to be seen again so far.

Miazga has, instead, spent the last two seasons at Vitesse Arnhem, hoping to impress the Blues’ heirarchy, and winning the KNVB Cup with the Dutch side will have gone some way to doing that.