No other club in the English Premier League has used the loan system so extensively, and to such good effect. Things may change going forward with the new regime in place, but the work, money and the strategy put in place, years, decades ago is finally starting to bear fruit at a time when the club really needs it.
Not all loans will be successful, due to a variety of reasons. The number of players with potential at youth level who are never able to turn that into a successful career at the highest levels are plentiful.
Early developers have a physical advantage. As their peers catch up and this physical advantage diminishes, it is a challenge to see if they can continue being one step ahead, this time because of talent, application and footballing nuance as opposed to mere strength or height.
There are too many examples in the Chelsea ranks for us to mention all of them, but here we look at two players who were loaned out last season and the differing experiences they enjoyed/endured. Conor Gallagher at Crystal Palace, and Billy Gilmour at Norwich City.
Billy Gilmour
Big things are expected of Billy. His performance for Scotland against England at Wembley seemed to be the perfect platform for the ex-Rangers academy product to make the next leap forward in his career.
There are a lot of factors involved when choosing a club for a player. The EPL is obviously the ideal choice, as it gives the Chelsea management a chance to see the player competing at the level he will hopefully be playing for at Chelsea. It is essential for a player to get game time, however, and finding a side whose starting eleven has an option for a relatively untried youngster is a tough ask.
The further you go down the pyramid, the easier that task becomes, but the level of football obviously decreases, while the physical demands increase every year. Premier League managers wax lyrical about the number of games their players have to endure, but compared to those in the Championship and League 1, the schedule is relatively easy.
Norwich seemed like a good choice. The newly promoted side were known to play possession football, and there was certainly a place in their midfield to accommodate someone of Gilmour’s obvious talents. The 21-year-old got plenty of game time, playing 24 times in the league as well as twice in both the FA Cup and EFL Cup. That in itself will be a positive – just getting that number of games into the legs is invaluable and, as a reward, he has had his contract extended.
That unfortunately is where the positive news ends. Norwich endured a tough season to say the least. Being a young player in that environment, where the team is shipping goals at one end and failing to score at the other is never going to be easy, or indeed a place to exhibit your skills.
Physically Gilmour did find it tough, but he was in a midfield that was mainly bypassed or sliced open. As a part of that midfield, he is partly culpable, but it is the place of a seasoned pro to be able to make an impact single-handedly, not a young player in his first full season.
Conor Gallagher
The season enjoyed by EPL loanee Conor Gallagher could not be starker. After successful seasons at Charlton, Swansea and West Brom, the 22-year-old had already notched up 75 appearances, 30 of those in the EPL. Palace, in contrast to Norwich, over achieved under new coach Patrick Vieira.
The attacking midfielder not only featured in 34 league games, scoring 8, and making 3 assists, but also broke into the England team and, after impressing for Southgate’s team, looks a likely member for the world cup squad for Qatar.
Gallagher went into that season a raw talent, one certainly not ready for a Premier League title and Champions League challenge. He ended it a proven top quality EPL player, which is exactly the point and aim of a loan, for all three parties.
That should serve as an inspiration to Billy Gilmour, who should not be too downcast about his experience. The players may be of a comparable age, but Conor’s career started in earnest three years earlier and, in the Englishman’s earlier loan spells, he certainly didn’t have the impact he achieved at Selhurst Park.
Chelsea and Norwich fans may not have been overly impressed with Gilmour’s season in East Anglia, but it is one step further on what promises to be a long and ultimately successful journey. In years to come, he may well look back at his months spent at the bottom of the league and realize they were an invaluable experience.