Alfie Gilchrist showed exactly what it means to be a young player coming through at Chelsea tonight.
The 20-year-old was thrown in for his second start for the club, with them coming in two tough games against Arsenal and Tottenham.
While things didn’t go their way at the Emirates, the Blues enjoyed a far better time of things at Stamford Bridge with a 2-0 victory tonight.
Goals eitherside of half-time from Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson secured a crucial three points for the Blues, and kept Mauricio Pochettino firmly in the hunt for keeping his job at the club.
He will have been particularly delighted with the performance of Gilchrist, who was playing the absence of a number of top players at the back.
The Blues were missing a number of key defenders, and lost the likes of Axel Disasi and Thiago Silva through injury after their last game against Aston Villa.
Redknapp wowed by Gilchrist
Redknapp delivered his verdict on the youngster after the game, and was full of praise for the academy graduate after the game.
He said to Sky Sports: “Excellent. I thought he was fantastic. Not easy playing against Son and then he got Brennan Johnson, he got taken off. I thought he was excellent, it just shows you have to give young players an opportunity. Just give them a chance sometimes, that’s all they need.”
Gilchrist likely to be loaned next season
With it being reported that he is set to go on loan at the end of this season, it feels as if it is a very big 12 months to come as far as his future at Stamford Bridge is concerned.
The pathway has never been easy to see for young players coming through, however in cameos so far Gilchrist has shown he definitely has something to offer for the side already, and experience will only help him in his quest to become a regular in the years to come.