When Trevoh Chalobah made his first appearance of the season in the UEFA Super Cup against Villareal, it was a real talking point.
The academy kid who hadn’t found a cone was suddenly in the team, unexpectedly. He did well in that game, and then played again in the opening fixture of the Premier League.
Since then he’s had 5 further starts in the league, the latest coming yesterday against Norwich. The most flattering thing you can say about the defender is that it’s now not even a talking point when he starts.
He was immaculate yesterday once again, and with the focus on the attacking players, the back 5 were dominant once again.
There’s barely a raised eyebrow when he starts now, it’s almost expected. Within the space of a couple of months, people have gone from fearing he would have a wasted season sitting in the stands, to becoming a genuine starting option for the best defence in Europe.
Now that’s progress.
Not furniture but future