Five ex-Chelsea stars haunting the Blues with amazing Premier League performances elsewhere
Romelu Lukaku, Kevin de Bruyne, Juan Mata, Mo Salah, Nemanja Matic are all giving it large... not to mention Ruben Loftus-Cheek
RUBEN LOFTUS-CHEEK gave an idea of what Chelsea were missing by being named man of the match on his England debut against Germany on Friday.
The 21-year-old became the latest youngster to leave Stamford Bridge in search of first-team football in the summer, joining Crystal Palace on a season-long loan deal.
And despite the Eagles’ woeful start to the season, Loftus-Cheek has earned rave reviews... culminating in his England call-up.
But the powerful midfielder isn’t the only player taking the Premier League by storm after leaving the Bridge. Our friends at have come up with five others.
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Romelu Lukaku – Manchester United
Snapped up by the Blues as an 18-year-old, much was expected of Lukaku when he moved from Anderlecht in an £18million deal in 2011.
And in two seasons on loan at West Bromwich and Everton he bagged 32 top-flight goals.
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Yet he was afforded just a single start for the west Londoners before being sold to the Toffees for £28m.
That was a deal which the Blues always looked likely to regret and so it proved.
Lukaku powered in another 53 league goals in just 104 starts for the Merseysiders and was a Chelsea transfer target in the summer.
But he joined Manchester United in a £75m move instead and already has 11 goals in just 16 starts.
Kevin de Bruyne – Manchester City
Perhaps the player Chelsea most regret moving on, De Bruyne has become one of Europe’s best since joining Manchester City in 2015 for a fee of £55m.
Yet, when the Blues offloaded De Bruyne to Wolfsburg for £18m in January 2014, it was seen as a masterstroke.
Getting that much for a player who had been unable to cut it in England seemed a big deal.
De Bruyne’s Chelsea career amounted to just five starts in two years – only two in the Prem – and then-Blues boss Jose Mourinho was critical of the Belgian for crying at his office door ‘every day’.
But De Bruyne flourished in the Bundesliga and was snapped up by City just 18 months later. He has become one of the Citizens’ most important players since.
Juan Mata – Manchester United
Another sold by Mourinho, the feeling was the diminutive Spaniard did not work hard enough defensively for the team.
But that was overlooking what Mata did do. In 147 appearances for Chelsea, he provided 61 assists and scored 34 goals.
That was obviously not enough for Mourinho, who sold the former Valencia playmaker to a struggling Manchester United side in January 2014 for £37.1m.
Since then he has been a key man for United and, despite being sold by him previously, remains so under Mourinho.
Mo Salah – Liverpool
The Egyptian was one of the most exciting young wingers in Europe when he moved to Chelsea from FC Basel in January 2014.
But he featured sparingly under Mourinho and was loaned to Fiorentina for the second half of the 2015/16 campaign before making another temporary move to Roma the following season.
Salah impressed in the Italian capital, making the move permanent and bagging 29 goals in a season and a half before Liverpool secured a £39m deal in the summer.
And since moving to Anfield the 25-year-old has become the Reds’ most important player, scoring 12 times in all competitions already.
Nemanja Matic – Manchester United
While many were stunned Chelsea got £40m from United for the Serbian, Blues coach Antonio Conte was fuming.
Although the midfielder had not always been a regular following N’Golo Kante’s arrival from Leicester City, he was still an important squad member.
But Chelsea sold up and Matic was reunited with Mourinho – the man who re-signed him for the west Londoners from Benfica – at Old Trafford.
And the powerful midfield general has quickly reminded people why he is so highly rated, adding solidity to United.
Not to mention.... Ruben Loftus-Cheek – Crystal Palace (loan)
Not an ex-Chelsea player quite yet, Loftus-Cheek is unusual at the club as this is his first loan spell.
The Lewisham-born midfielder, who joined the Blues as an eight-year-old, was handed his debut by Mourinho during the 2014/15 campaign but could not break into the side.
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He spent last season on the fringes under Conte before being allowed to move on loan to Selhurst Park in the summer where he has flourished.
In a poor Eagles' side, the 6’3” playmaker is the stand-out player and was rewarded with his England debut in Friday’s draw against Germany.
