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News
- 1 hours ago
Is Josh Acheampong the answer to Chelsea's centre-back woes?
Cameron Smith
- 6 Oct 2025 09:05 BST
- 7 min read
Analysis
The first two months of the 2025-26 season have highlighted the centre-back problem at Chelsea.
Levi Colwill has been ruled out for the majority of the campaign due to an ACL injury, while the rest of the options available to Enzo Maresca are arguably not good enough for a club who have spent in excess of €1.5 billion on new signings over the past three years and have ambitions of winning this year’s Premier League title.
Current ETV
Josh Acheampong
D (R)
Chelsea
Josh Acheampong
D (R)
Chelsea
ETV Range
€13.6M - €16.7M
Furthermore, with Wesley Fofana and Tosin Adarabioyo both currently injured and Trevoh Chalobah suspended, Maresca was forced to select a new centre-back pairing of Benoit Badiashile and Josh Acheampong for the visit of Liverpool on Saturday evening.
The former has failed to sustain a lengthy injury-free run of games over the past 12 months, and is yet to regain the form he displayed during his first six months at Stamford Bridge, while the latter is still only 19 years old and had just seven Premier League appearances under his belt before this weekend.
However, Chelsea produced their best performance of the season and the partnership of Badiashile and Acheampong played a key role as they combined to nullify the threat of Premier League record signing Alexander Isak throughout.
It is worth noting that Reece James produced a sublime display at centre-back following Badiashile’s injury, while summer signing Jorrel Hato was also excellent after Acheampong’s withdrawal in the 68th minute, however it was certainly a coming-of-age performance from the Cobham academy graduate.
Josh Acheampong vs Liverpool
Acheampong was impressive during Chelsea’s 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace on the opening day of the new season, but he only accrued a further 45 minutes of action across all competitions before the win over Liverpool.
A combination of illness and competition for places have limited his involvement so far this term, however his performance against the reigning Premier League champions proved he is ready to play a substantial role for the Blues this campaign.
The 19-year-old, who is equally adept at right-back or centre-back, was immense throughout his time on the pitch versus Arne Slot’s side, frequently thwarting both Cody Gakpo and the aforementioned Isak down Liverpool’s left-hand side.
At youth level, Acheampong established himself as arguably England’s best progressive carrier from deep positions and he has continued this trait at senior level, despite the huge step up in quality of opposition.
In the first-half, for example, there was a moment in which he received the ball from Robert Sanchez and was immediately closed down by Dominik Szobozlai. Unfazed, Acheampong sprinted from inside his own penalty box to the halfway line, under constant pressure from the Hungarian, before laying the ball off to Malo Gusto. In the process, he broke the Liverpool press and took four players completely out of the game.
A similar incident happened later in the first-half when Acheampong rushed out of the defensive line to tackle Isak on the halfway line, before bursting past Alexis Mac Allister and winning a throw-in deep into Liverpool territory.
However, arguably Acheampong’s most impressive moment was when a Giorgi Mamardashvili long throw looked set to spring a dangerous Liverpool counter-attack. But, with Isak on his tail, Acheampong brought the ball down with aplomb and calmly rolled the back to Sanchez to nullify the threat at hand. Quality personified.
The teenager is still raw, however his one-vs-one defending is already top notch, while he undoubtedly possesses the physical traits and maturity needed to succeed in the Premier League.
Maresca was vocal in his desire for Chelsea to sign a new centre-back over the summer, but the club’s failure to comply could present Acheampong with the opportunity to cement his place as a first-team regular in west London, and he looks more than ready to fulfil this role.
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