During the 2021/22 season, Chelsea finished third in the Premier League and conceded 33 goals.
This record worsened in the most recent campaign, as the two-time European Champions placed dismally in 12th and let in 14 more goals to underline a serious decline in the defence.
A host of players experienced a sharp decline, but one man who never allowed his standards to drop was Thiago Silva.
The Brazilian is one of the players who emerged from the catastrophic past with any degree of integrity, described as a ‘beacon of excellence in a sea of mediocrity’ by Simon Johnson, and was named the club’s Player of the Season.
However, the veteran turns 39 in September, and soon the Blues will no longer be able to rely upon his tremendous consistency and reliability to stabilize the club through tricky times.
Luckily, the Cobham production line has been at it again and Alfie Gilchrist could be the next young talent to forge a notable breakthrough.
However, recently-promoted Sheffield United are sniffing around the opportunity of signing him on a permanent deal.
Gilchrist’s contract expires in 2024, but Mauricio Pochettino is keen to offer a new deal with the view of either a shot at first-team football or a loan to further his development.
Who is Alfie Gilchrist?
Gilchrist has been at Chelsea since he was a U11 and has formed a magnificent reputation within the academy.
This began when he was named the Blues’ 2021 Scholar of the Year. The following term, the Englishman emphatically the reasoning for this, playing a monumental role for both the U18’s and development squad, captaining the FA Youth Cup side that reached the semi-finals and won the U18 Premier League Cup.
Gilchrist’s frightening trajectory was then elevated to a new level when he inherited the captaincy following Bashir Humphreys’ mid-season loan to Paderborn at the start of 2023 and started 22 games for the side.
Subsequently, the 19-year-old was nominated for the PL2 Player of the Season award, with head coach Mark Robinson saying: “He has shown excellent consistency in his play, as well as taking himself out his comfort zone in terms of what we have asked him to do on the ball. His approach to all aspects of training has been first class and the nomination is fully deserved.”
Across the campaign, he notched 29 appearances in all competitions and played 90 minutes in six of the seven clean sheets in the PL2.
How good is Alfie Gilchrist?
Sean Conlon, who works as a scout for Chelsea, has also eulogised the centre-back and feels he is someone with “great promise.”
A player of this calibre and potential appears on the right pathway to possibly replace Silva in the future.
Last season, the former Paris Saint-Germain titan made the second-most starts of any player for Chelsea and was an indispensable defensive asset – his 33 interceptions, 106 clearances, 112 winning duels and 28 blocks at that stage of the campaign were all the highest in the squad.
His longevity, composure, and dependability are unfathomable, which renowned pundit and former Premier League striker Gary Lineker has echoed, saying: “How good is Thiago Silva? I’ll answer that myself: ridiculously good. A wonderful defender who’s defying Father Time.”
He requires a dominant successor, and Gilchrist’s experience as a captain at youth level, combined with his defensive aptitude and undoubted potential, make him a worthy heir.