Loan Army 24/25: Roundup

Lets see how our loan army are getting on.....

Feb 13, 2025

Crystal Palace fans are in agreement about Chelsea loanee Ben Chilwell after his debut for them, one thing is 'very apparent'

Good Afternoon Ladies and Gents,

Long time no speak about our Loan Army…….

As I mentioned on last weeks podcast I gave this segment a break through January as there are so many changes to the loan army during the transfer window.

Lets get into our current loan army, 9 new loanees! This report is just a general overview and rating of the loan so far.

Teddy Sharman-Lowe (Doncaster Rovers) - Goalkeeper;

Teddy is still Doncaster number 1, he is playing every game, making saves and keeping clean sheets here and there. 7/10 loan spell.

Alfie Gilchrist (Sheffield United) - Right Back;

Alfie is out injured at the minute and has missed the last 3 games, before that he was putting in consistently solid performances at Right Back. He has new competition for that position in Ipswich Town’s Harry Clarke who has joined on loan. It could derail the loan spell post injury, but that is me speculating. 6.5/10 loan spell.

Dylan Williams (Burton Albion) - Left Back/Wing Back;

Dylan hasn’t featured for a while, the new manager has taken to an older and more physically solid team which Dylan hasn’t been able to break into yet. He has played a lot of senior football this year for a pretty poor side. 5/10 loan spell.

Caleb Wiley (Watford) - Left Back/Wing Back;

Caleb has been injured for a couple of months. He has switched loan spells in January and is now with Watford in the Championship. He is due to return from injury in the coming weeks. TBA rating.

Andrey Santos (RC Strasbourg) - Centre Midfield;

The next loanee to break into the Chelsea first team. This guy is a serious player and is incredibly consistent for his age, he is playing in a very competitive league and is dropping top performance after top performance. He has even captained the side recently. For what its worth it was 100% the right decision to keep him at Strasbourg in January. 10/10 loan spell

Bashir Humphreys (Burnley) - Centre Back;

Another consistent loanee, Bash is playing superb at left back for the impenetrable Burnley, who are keeping clean sheet after clean sheet at the minute. Burnley have an obligation to buy I believe, so I think Bash will move their permanently. 8/10 loan spell.

Lesley Ugochukwu (Southampton) - Holding Midfield;

Lesley is playing consistent premier league football under the new Southampton manager, it’s good to see him playing and developing. I personally don’t see him as Chelsea quality or have the ceiling to be, but I would be very happy to be proved wrong. Recency bias taking over here but consistent Premier league football makes this a 7/10 loan for me.

Armando Broja (Everton) - Striker;

Still injured.

Kendry Paez (Independiente del Valle) - No.10/Attacker;

Kendry is currently representing Ecuador at the U20 South American championships which is a bit of a cheat code considering he already has 17 senior caps. An issue back in October to do with something off the pitch has halted his game time a little or at least the consistency of game time. His performances are still good and he did make a heartfelt apology for the issue. Rumours are his loan spell will be cut short post the SA U20 champs and he will train with Chelsea for the rest of the season in build up to the CWC in June. I think a Strasbourg loan could be on the cards for next season, personal opinion. 7/10 loan spell.

Estevao Willian (Palmeiras) - Right Winger;

I say it every time and continue to say it, this kid is incredibly special. The consistency in his performances at such a young age are mind blowing! He could potentially play against us in the CWC as he will not be joining the club until after the tournament. 9/10 loan spell, although he had to stay at his parent club until he turned 18.

Djordje Petrovic - (Strasbourg) - Goalkeeper;

Djordje is doing really well at Strasbourg, he is saving loads, keeping clean sheets and has the best passing % of all Goalkeepers in Ligue 1 this season. Shame Ben Roberts doesn’t rate him and we sent him out on loan. Could he come back and be number 1 next season? 8/10 loan spell.

Leo Castledine (Shrewsbury Town) - Attacking Midfield;

Leo is currently out injured, but he has put up lots of senior minutes this season in his first loan spell. It has been positive on the whole for his development. 6.5/10 loan spell.

Max Merrick (Hampton & Richmond) - Goalkeeper

New loan, unable to judge yet. Ted Curd’s direct replacement at H&R

Axel Disasi (Aston Villa) - Centre Back