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Chelsea youths extend contracts and go on loan

Chelsea academy graduates Tammy Abraham and Kasey Palmer signed new five-year and four-year contracts respectively to stay with their parent club.

The two players were keys to Chelsea’s recent dominance in the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup. Abraham was tied for second for top goalscorers in the 2015-16 UEFA Youth League, and Palmer scored the winning goal against Paris Saint-Germain to help Chelsea retain their title as youth champions of Europe.

Abraham scored three goals in the finals of the FA Youth Cup in both 2014-15 and 2015-16 to help the Blues continue their dynasty in the youth system. Both players continued to hone their skills when they were loaned to other clubs to play against stronger competition.

Abraham is coming off a successful spell at Bristol City where he scored 23 goals in 41 appearances in the Championship. After signing the contract, the striker is heading to Wales to be loaned to Swansea City for the upcoming season. This will continue the trend of Chelsea youth going on loan to play first-team football to prove themselves.

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The winner of Bristol City’s Player of the Year award has also returned from the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, scoring one goal in the tournament. England lost in the semifinals to Germany in a penalty shootout, including a miss from Abraham.

Palmer spent the past year at Huddersfield Town, but was injured for the latter part of the campaign. He returned for the Championship Play Off, and helped the club secure promotion to the Premier League. The attacking midfielder is expected to renew his loan with the newly-promoted club for the next campaign.

 

Palmer’s new contract and renewed loan is expected to complicate matters with Isaiah Brown’s next destination. Brown was also on loan to Huddersfield when they were a Championship club, but Premier League rules do not allow multiple players from one club to join another on loan. His next move could be a permanent transfer to Huddersfield with a buy-back clause, or a loan to a different club if Chelsea do not want to part ways with the 20-year-old forward.

It has been extremely rare for Chelsea graduates to break into the club’s first-team squad, with former captain John Terry being the last successful one to make a meaningful contribution. Premier League loans will give both players minutes to play at the highest level of English football to develop their skills to prove why they deserve a spot in Chelsea’s future starting XI.

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