Lavia upgrade: Chelsea must unleash "incredible" star with Caicedo in 25/26

Since the new ownership took over at Chelsea, they have been looking to implement a “multi-club model” similar to those already in place with the likes of Red Bull and City Group.

BlueCo have only acquired one other club alongside Chelsea so far, investing in French outfit Strasbourg, but that has proven to be a huge success so far, with Liam Rosenior’s side sitting 5th in Ligue 1, challenging for a spot in European football next season.

Plenty of Chelsea players have already benefited from loan spells with the French side, as well as Mamadou Sarr, who joined Strasbourg from Lyon in the 2024/25 summer transfer window, impressing enough to then earn a quick move to the Blues for the 2025/26 season, showing the progression route possible from club to club.

Strasbourg stars who could play for Chelsea

Sarr is a right-footed central defender who has made 23 appearances for Strasbourg this season, providing one assist and contributing to nine clean sheets in his 2,008 minutes played. The 19-year-old defender has excellent composure on the ball, with the physical traits to play in a man-to-man system, jumping out from the backline to win his duels when needed.

Another player who will be returning to Chelsea next season, after spending this campaign on loan with Strasbourg, is Djordje Petrovic, who has made 24 appearances so far this season, conceding 29 goals and keeping eight clean sheets in his 2,160 minutes played.

The 25-year-old has made some on-ball improvements during the build-up under Rosenior this season, completing 79% of his passes in Ligue 1, which could see him return and become Chelsea’s number one next season, after poor performances from Robert Sanchez, who has made eight errors that have led to shots or goals for the opposition.

Both Sarr and Petrovic could be a part of Chelsea’s first-team squad next season under Maresca, with both players suited to his style of play, especially after their extra development, playing a similar system at Strasbourg. However, there is another player who has spent the year on loan in France, and could be the best of the bunch, ready to play his part next season in London.

Why Andrey Santos could be a star for Chelsea

Andrey Santos has enjoyed an exceptional loan spell in France this season, making 27 appearances, scoring 10 goals, providing three assists, and contributing to eight clean sheets in his 2,394 minutes.

The 20-year-old has also captained the side this season, with Rosenior praising the Brazilian for having “a reading of the game a player his age shouldn’t have.“

When comparing Santos to both Moises Caicedo and Roméo Lavia this season, you can see the young midfielder is already outperforming them in certain metrics, winning more tackles per 90, providing more goal threat, and making the most ball recoveries of the trio.

Another key factor for Santo’s success and a reason for Chelsea fans to be excited about his integration next season, would be due to Lavia’s injury troubles since joining the club, only managing 596 minutes of action this season so far, whilst only managing 32 minutes last season.

Jacek Kulig has already praised Santos as an “incredible” midfielder in the making, with the Brazilian only being 20-years-old and already outperforming the likes of Caicedo and Lavia in plenty of underlying metrics, showing he is ready to compete at Chelsea next season.

Next season, the Blues will have Caicedo, Lavia, Enzo Fernández, new signing Dario Essugo, and the addition of Santos coming back from his Strasbourg loan, giving them an extremely strong depth in the midfield area, which should provide Maresca with an excellent foundation for his team going forwards.