Chelsea promote Nigeria-eligible Derrick Abu to first team as World Cup is certain to take its toll

NIGERIA-eligible teenage fullback Derrick Abu has been promoted to the Chelsea first team by manager Graham Potter ahead of the resumption of the English Premier League when the World Cup ends to make up for fatigued players who may need a rest.

For the first time ever, the World Cup is being held mid-season and will resume on December 26, just a week after the final of Qatar 2022, which shall take place on the 18th. Chelsea currently have 12 players participating in the World Cup and with some of them certain to require a rest when they return, Mr Potter has decided to start looking for replacements.

Chelsea started preparations for the second half of the 2022/23 season on Tuesday after a fortnight away from their Cobham training base. Training has begun and to make up the numbers, Mr Potter invited several outstanding development squad players to train with the first team, including German-born Nigerian right-back Abu.

Exciting fullback Abu has been promoted to first team training several times this season but has not received a call-up for a competitive match. It is expected that he is now likely to see some action when the season resumes.

Chelsea and Aston Villa will compete for the inaugural CBF Al Wahda Challenge Cup on December 11 at the  Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi. This may provide Abu with a fuerst taste of action.

Carney Chukwuemeka is another Nigerian youngster at Chelsea who has caught the eye lately but it remains to be seen whether the central midfielder will be named in the travelling squad to Abu Dhabi for a mid-season training camp. He has not figured for Chelsea since appearing as a substitute against Manchester United on October 22 due to a hamstring injury.