“The team should have been built around him five years ago”

Chelsea legend Joe Cole has slammed the club for letting a Cobham graduate leave the club in 2021.

Marc Guehi joined Chelsea’s academy as a six-year-old, and he was tipped to be a major part of the Blues squad in the future during his stint with the academy. The defender only managed 2 appearances for the first team before getting loaned out to Swansea in 2020/21.

After his loan spell, the London-based club decided to sell the English defender. Guehi joined Crystal Palace in a deal worth around £18 million in 2021 and hasn’t looked back since. He won the FA Cup and the Community Shield with The Eagles during his 5-year stint at Selhurst Park.

In January 2026, Manchester City saw off competition from multiple clubs to sign Guehi for a fee of just £20 million. In the following months, Guehi has cemented himself as a key part of the City defense.

Joe Cole slammed his former club for letting a player like Guehi leave and asked for an internal investigation to be conducted to see who at the club signed off on his sale. He said (via Metro):

“He came from Chelsea from the age of six, we sold him to Crystal Palace, and now he’s at Manchester City, and he looks like he’s been there for 20 years,’ Cole said.

“I’m looking at him and I’m thinking: how has this kid got a Manchester City shirt on? The team should have been built around him five years ago.

“Whoever has let him out the door at Chelsea… if I’m the owner, I’m going, “Right, who’s decision, or what collective of people’s decision, was it to think it was a good idea to let this kid leave the club?”.

“Everyone would go, “It wasn’t me, it wasn’t me!”… unless you find out who is making these decisions, these decisions will continue to happen and you’ll keep losing players like that. You need to do an appraisal on it”

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