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Michy Batshuayi was finally handed the chance to lead Chelsea’s attack against Crystal Palace this weekend.
Sadly, for the 24-year-old he failed to make the type of impact required to suggest that he should be handed the role on a more regular basis.
Batshuayi was withdrawn after 57 ineffectual minutes of his side’s shock 2-1 defeat on Saturday, during which he did little to trouble Palace’s centre-back pairing of Mamaduo Sakho and Scott Dann.
During Chelsea’s recent 1-0 defeat to league leaders Manchester City at Stamford Bridge, Blues boss Antonio Conte drew widespread criticism for his failure to replace the injured Alvaro Morata with the talented young Belgium international.
Batshuayi, after all, had just scored the winner against Atletico Madrid in his side’s impressive Champions League victory and despite not starting many games for Chelsea since his £33 million move from Marseille in the summer of 2016, has an excellent minutes to goals ratio, of a goal every 75 minutes.
Many observers also pointed to the fact that he had scored the Stamford Bridge club’s title-clinching goal at West Brom last season. The Italian coache’s snub during the City game seemed to confirm what many of us thought, that he simply does not trust Batshuayi.
It seems however, after his performance against Palace this weekend, that Conte’s reservations about the young strikers ability may be well founded.
Batshuayi offered very little in terms of the type of intelligent movement or hold-up play required by a top striker playing for a team that operates with a lone front-man.
He definitly does not seem to have the required skill-set like Alvaro Morata, which allows Conte to implement his preferred style of play. This is why the Italian is said to be so furious at his club’s inability to sign Fernando Llorente, who he would have seen as a more like-for-like replacement for his fellow Spaniard.
Batshuayi is obviously a talented young player and is still learning his trade at the elite level of the game.
However, in order for the 24-year-old to develop he needs to play regularly and be allowed to have the occasional off day from which he can learn.
Unfortunately for the young Belgian, clubs like Chelsea – at the top end of the Premier League – rarely have the time and patience needed to allow a young player to develop if he is clearly below the required standard.
For the good of his career and any hopes he has of making Belgium’s 2018 World Cup squad he may be better off seeking a move away from Stamford Bridge in January, to a club better suited to aid his development.
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