Harvey St Clair left Chelsea yesterday to join Venezia in Italy’s Serie B, having been at the club since the age of six.
It usually wouldn’t mean much, as a 21 year old leaving without a single first team appearance. But there is the sense it could be the sign of the changing times reaching Chelsea.
We’ve seen Manchester City and Arsenal lose players to European clubs, and it was inevitable that this trend would hit Chelsea too. In fact, given how reluctant the Blues have been to let their academy products play in the first team, we might perhaps have expected to see it sooner.
While St Clair probably wasn’t ever going to force his way in to the team, if players like him continue to see their path blocked they will continue to turn down new deals and leave. It’s the Harveys now, but in the future it could be the Ruben’s or the Tammys of the future.
