Chelsea's loan army might not be as numerous as it was in previous years, but there are still some pretty solid players plying their trade elsewhere while saying on the Blues' books.
In fact, a team consisting only of the Chelsea loanees might be strong enough to compete for a Premier League place. Or is it? Let's have a look at it.
Goalkeeper and defence
A goalkeeper is arguably the weakest position in the team (well, if it was not Chelsea would've already tried to use it to the first team's advantage). Jamie Cumming was Lampard's third-choice keeper last season and is now a regular starter at League Two side Stevenage.
As for defence, Marc Guehi impresses a lot as a cornerstone of Swansea's defence, while Malang Sarr plays for Porto in the Champions League. Victor Moses has become a regular starter at Spartak Moscow, and 18-year-old Ian Maatsen is a revelation at Charlton (although he's so young that Transfermarkt has not yet figured out his estimated market value!).
- Jamie Cumming (£405k - all the market values are provided by Transfermarkt)
- Ian Maatsen (unknown)
- Marc Guehi (£4.95m)
- Malang Sarr (£14.4m)
- Victor Moses (£5.4m)
Midfield
That's an area crowded with Premier League-calibre players., so we have to make some tough choices here. Ross Barkley is helping the resurgent Aston Villa, while Conor Gallagher might be the best player at a struggling West Bromwich side.
We also have Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ethan Ampadu to fill the third spot, but it goes to Tiemoue Bakayoko who has become a regular starter at Champions League-chasing Napoli. Probably, he just didn't fit in in the Premier League.
- Tiemoue Bakayoko (£27m)
- Ross Barkley (£19.35m)
- Conor Gallagher (£9m)
Attack
Luckily, we can shift Loftus-Cheek to attack where he played earlier this season. It's not his preferred role, but we're somewhat short on attacking options, and Ruben might well be the best of them.
Kenedy, a reliable squad player for Europa League side Granada, occupies the other wing and in the middle, we have to go with Belgium international Michy Batshuayi, although Armando Broja is not far off.
- Ruben Loftus-Cheek (£21.6m)
- Kenedy (£7.2m)
- Michy Batshuayi (£10.8m)
So, here's the full Loanees XI with an estimated market value of just over £120m (and there are some bench options, too):
What changes would you make? Share your thoughts in the comments!
