The teenage winger is one of the shining lights of the academy, but he clearly believes his first-team prospects are better elsewhere
Chelsea are closing in on a £250 million ($333m) outlay in what has been yet another prolific summer of spending at Stamford Bridge, but there are signs their recruitment drive will have more than just a financial cost.
The club has continued with the strategy of targeting the best, high-potential young players they can get their hands on, with all eight arrivals to date – including Joao Pedro, Liam Delap and Jorrel Hato – aged 23 or under, and they still aren't finished yet.
However, this approach has consequences, especially for the west Londoner's existing prospects, and the news that academy graduate Tyrique George wants to leave is a stark reminder of that. This is the latest suggestion that this transfer policy is at the expense of Chelsea's own Cobham products – and they must find a way to strike a balance.
AFPReady to cut ties
It seemed like a matter of time before scrutiny around George's future intensified, and another predictably frenzied summer of business at Stamford Bridge has put the 19-year-old under the microscope. Chelsea have added two more young wingers in Jamie Gittens and Estevao Willian, and while Jadon Sancho has departed, a move for his fellow Manchester United outcast Alejandro Garnacho is seemingly in the pipeline, as well as RB Leipzig attacking midfielder Xavi Simons, who can play out wide.
It was little surprise, then, when it finally emerged that George wants to leave the Blues this summer. Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano broke the news, first reporting that the winger 'can leave' either on loan or permanently before interestingly changing the phrasing to say he 'wants to leave' for 'regular football', despite Chelsea's 'preference' to keep him.
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Wherever the truth lies – whether George is being forced out or can see the bigger picture for himself – you can hardly blame him for wanting to leave; at almost any other club, a return of three goals and five assists in scant minutes across all competitions in 2024-25 would constitute a breakthrough season and a platform from which to kick on to regular first-team minutes.
But Chelsea is no normal club, and the ruthless pursuit of the best young talent around means that that contribution – probably the maximum George could achieve in the circumstances – won't be good enough to guarantee him his place in Maresca's plans long-term amid another breathless summer of business.
Gittens' arrival pushes the teenager down the pecking order, while Pedro Neto is likely already a starter and Garnacho is potentially on his way. This will raise questions not just over George's future, but also every other current academy player who dreams of being the next Reece James or Levi Colwill. As it stands, it's almost impossible to see the pathway.
Getty Images Sport'With Chelsea or somewhere else'
What's even more telling is that it seems like George has seen this scenario coming from a mile off, reflecting a potential shift in the mentality of Chelsea's Cobham hopefuls – some of whom will have already resolved to never actually play for the Blues at senior level and therefore must use the club as a development tool and launchpad for a successful career elsewhere.
When you read between the lines, George has been consistent in his messaging that he just wants to play – at Chelsea or elsewhere. When asked about his long-term goals in an interview with the YouTube channel in May, he said: "I'd say long-term just to carry on playing as many games as possible, if that's with Chelsea or somewhere else. I'm just really happy to keep playing games and getting experience as well."
Then, in an in-house interview published in June, he reiterated the fact he simply wants game time, saying: "I'll go anywhere, play anywhere [on the pitch]. I just want to get minutes and get on the pitch. I'm proud, but I don't really take the time to think about it because everything's so fast-paced.
"I’m happy for myself, but I just want to keep growing and keep playing. Then I will see where it takes me, but I hope it's to a really high level."
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Clearly, George is no mug, and if Chelsea aren't going to give him the minutes he craves then he will be acutely aware that there are plenty of recent cases of Cobham graduates thriving elsewhere – Marc Guehi, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall, to name a few.
One notable example is Rio Ngumoha, who was poached by Liverpool in September last year – much to Chelsea's annoyance. Although the 16-year-old winger is yet to make his Premier League debut, he has shone in pre-season for the Reds and seems primed for a first-team breakthrough.
Ngumoha is believed to have made the decision to leave the Blues in July 2024, when he was still 15, having been convinced by the pathway to the first team on offer at Anfield, presumably in comparison to the increasingly complicated route at Chelsea.
Of course, he hadn't come close to making a first-team appearance like George, but this could become an even more regular occurrence in light of the west Londoners' recruitment strategy. Indeed, it has previously been reported that there was growing concern among families of some academy players as a result of the raft of incoming youngsters from around the world.
