“Then he can become the full package”

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has heaped praise on Jesse Derry after he made his first Chelsea start against Nottingham Forest. The teenager was the only winger in the squad with all four senior players out injured.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Henry said that he was impressed with Derry, hailing the youngster for his quick feet and tricks. He added that the winger was doing well against the Nottingham Forest defenders and said:

“By the look of him, he’s a tricky player, good on the ball. Hopefully he can score goals, create goals, then he can become the full package. Let’s see what he can do. It’s gonna be a good battle with Abbott.”

Former manager Liam Rosenior was the first to hand him a chance, bringing him on in the FA Cup win at Hull City. He spoke about the teenager ahead of the Wrexham game and said:

“Jesse will travel with the group, so they will be part of the squad for Wrexham. Jesse’s really impressed me, Ryan’s impressed, but it’s not just those two. There have been a few that I’ve got to see in training when they’ve been brought up that I’m really happy with.” (via club website)

However, the first start ended in an unfortunate way for the teenager, as he was stretchered off in the first half. The winger suffered a head injury inside the box after a coming together with Zach Abbott.

Calum McFarlane commented on Chelsea teeanger

Calum McFarlane spoke to the media after handing Jesse Derry his first start, saying that they trusted the teenager to do well on the pitch. He added that the winger was ready to make an impact after training regularly with first team in recent days and said:

“It’s a great opportunity for Jesse. He’s trained with us a lot, he’s been in the squad, he’s played in other games, so we trust him. We know his talent, and I’ve worked with him previously. The boys trust him, and he’s trained really well, so we’re really excited for Jesse.”

Chelsea were down 2-0 in the first half when Derry was forced off injured. The Blues have since gone down 3-0 and were 3-1 down in the final minutes of the game and facing their 13th defeat in the league this season.

They have slipped to ninth in the league table and are outside the places for all European competitions next season.