Back in 2014, Jose Mourinho predicted that three Chelsea prospects would go on to achieve great things – but the careers of the trio have been a mixed bag.
Mourinho returned to Chelsea for a second spell in 2013 and was building a side to challenge for the title in his second season at the helm.
Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Filipe Luis and Juan Cuadrado were all signed up in the summer window but ahead of pre-season, Mourinho talked up three young English stars who came through the academy.
He was confident that all three would make the grade and said he “should blame” himself if they didn’t go on to play for the national team.
Speaking on the tour, Mourinho said: “My conscience tells me that if, for example, [Lewis] Baker, [Izzy] Brown and [Dominic] Solanke are not national team players in a few years, I should blame myself.
“They are part of a process the club started without me. At this moment, we have players who will be Chelsea players. And when they become Chelsea players, they will become England players, almost for sure.”
Although they were integral in Chelsea’s dominance at youth level, it didn’t quite happen for the trident.
Lewis Baker only played twice for Chelsea – with both appearances coming eight years apart in FA Cup games. During his time as a Chelsea player, he was sent on a plethora of loans – namely to Sheffield Wednesday, MK Dons, Vitesse, Middlesbrough, Leeds, Reading, Fortuna Dusseldorf and Trabzonspor.
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He then found regular football with Stoke City in the Championship, featuring 92 times and scoring 20 goals across four seasons. For the current campaign, he signed on loan for Blackburn Rovers but has played just once.
It has been a similar story for Izzy Brown, who also spent time on loan at Vitesse and Sheffield Wednesday, as well as the likes of Rotherham, Huddersfield, Brighton, Leeds and Luton.
After Mourinho singled him out as a player for the future, the forward made just one appearance in the 2014/15 title-winning campaign, coming on as a late sub in a 3-0 defeat to former club West Brom.
He ended up signing for Preston North End on a free in 2021 but didn’t play a single minute for the Lilywhites and was released. Brown retired in 2023 after two series achilles injuries.
Dominic Solanke was another Chelsea academy graduate who spent time with feeder club Vitesse in the Netherlands. He left with a mere 17-minute Champions League cameo in the first-team and failed to get going at Liverpool, where he once went 26 matches without scoring.
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He would eventually find his feet at Bournemouth and a 21-goal season in 2023/24 earned him a £55 million switch to Spurs, where he’s found the net five times.
Seven years after his first cap, Solanke returned to the England national team with a substitute appearance against Greece in October.