The forgotten £200,000-a-week footballer: Inside what life’s like for Ben Chilwell, the final star standing of Chelsea’s bomb squad – and what comes subsequent

England’s left again for the Republic of Eire was Levi Colwill, a central defender. For Finland, it was Rico Lewis, a proper again. Ben Chilwell represented his nation as not too long ago as March and but even amid such a scarcity, he has by no means been farther from the Three Lions line-up.

That’s as a result of Chilwell has not been coaching with Chelsea‘s first crew, not to mention taking part in within the Premier League as a 27-year-old Englishman who needs to be coming into the prime of his profession.

Well being isn’t the difficulty. Chilwell participated within the pre-season tour of the US, that includes in each coaching session and two fixtures after upholding his annual custom of rising triumphant within the membership’s operating exams alongside Malo Gusto. 

Neither is his angle, final season’s vice captain throwing himself into ambassadorial work on that journey reminiscent of when he visited the house of a Chelsea tremendous fan referred to as Bradley in Atlanta throughout his downtime.

The issue is, like Raheem Sterling, he discovered upon his return to London that he’s not in Enzo Maresca’s first-team plans. Hints had been dropped within the States, with Chelsea’s new head coach name-checking each different left again whereas discussing who suited his model of play with the assembled journalists in Santa Clara, however affirmation was no much less crushing.

The distinction between Sterling and Chilwell now could be one secured his swap – arguably an improve by becoming a member of Mikel Arteta’s title challengers at Arsenal with Chelsea subsidising his wages – whereas the opposite stays because the forgotten footballer on a wage price round £200,000 per week.

Chelsea would like him taking part in for the following 4 months fairly than perched in purgatory, however at the moment, Chilwell is in line to stick with sources saying yesterday he’s not near a swap to a rustic the place the switch window stays open. 

That features Turkey the place the hearsay mill had Jose Mourinho bringing him to Fenerbahce after they offered their left again Ferdi Kadioglu to Brighton. Barring a dramatic change between now and Friday night, when the Turkish window closes, Chilwell will stay at Cobham till January a minimum of.

These near Chilwell insist it is senseless for him to go unused, explaining it’s higher to put your participant within the store window fairly than shove him in storage and wreck your possibilities of recouping something near the £50million you paid Leicester in August 2020.

In addition they revealed how Chilwell had hoped he could be included in final week’s Convention League squad submitted to UEFA so he may get some modicum of recreation time. Even when it got here within the type of a December journey to Kazakhstan to face Astana, the place temperatures can stoop so low that the local weather freezes nostril hairs, beggars can’t be choosers.

Certainly, sources have claimed he was pre-warned that Chelsea could be leaving a number of of their star gamers out of that squad, together with Cole Palmer, Wesley Fofana and Romeo Lavia, so they might handle their minutes. But when the squad was confirmed for the Convention League’s subsequent stage, through which Chelsea play six fixtures, Chilwell was snubbed.

This Friday will see Chelsea reveal the 25-player squad they’ve submitted to the Premier League. A minimum of eight have to be ‘homegrown’ and Chilwell qualifies for that class, however Maresca has already insisted these coaching individually will stay sidelined beneath him.

If excluded as anticipated, that would go away the Carabao Cup as Chilwell’s solely hope for aggressive soccer between now and the following window opening. League Two Barrow are because of go to Stamford Bridge within the third spherical of that competitors in two weeks’ time and, once more, sources say Chilwell could be very happy to characteristic if given the possibility.

Chelsea declined to share on Tuesday when quizzed on their plans for Chilwell, together with who he’s now coaching alongside at Cobham, given so many members of the membership’s so-called ‘bomb squad’ have departed from Trevoh Chalobah to Crystal Palace and Kepa Arrizabalaga to Bournemouth.

Chilwell was supplied to Premier League golf equipment in the summertime, his identify cropping up in conversations with Manchester United surrounding Jadon Sancho however ending with the 24-year-old becoming a member of on his personal mortgage with an obligation to purchase. 

Brentford had been additionally out there for a left again, but Bees sources say Chilwell by no means made their shortlist as they ultimately secured 18-year-old Jayden Meghoma from Southampton as an alternative as competitors for Rico Henry.

Inevitably, Chilwell’s wages have posed an issue in Chelsea’s seek for a possible purchaser, together with the purple flag of his damage report after enduring extra setbacks than he would have favored.

Referred to as ‘Chilly’ to all, Chilwell is standard within Chelsea. One of many few who was on the membership earlier than the brand new house owners took over in Could 2022, he has been a mentor to the youthful hopefuls. Maresca himself describes him as a ‘pretty man’, although went on to warn how he’ll ‘wrestle’ to get again in beneath him.

Nonetheless it ends, it’s an unlucky flip of occasions for the left again who has ‘1235’ tattooed beneath his left knee, signifying his pleasure at turning into 1235th participant to characterize England. Because the Three Lions took to the hallowed turf of Wembley final evening, he can solely have questioned when he may need that probability once more.