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Football London
Football London
Sport
Tom Coley

Chelsea forced to rethink January loan with Graham Potter already completing deal

Graham Potter could use his contacts and relationships with former club Brighton sooner than expected in order to strengthen his Chelsea side.

The new manager had eight players join him on the south coast earlier this summer before eventually moving to Chelsea after Thomas Tuchel's shock sacking left him top of Todd Boehly's wishlist to takeover at Stamford Bridge.

This has created unfortunate irony for several players on both sides of the deal including Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Billy Gilmour, but one player that has already been effected by the move is loanee Levi Colwill.

READ MORE: Graham Potter handed triple Chelsea blow as N'Golo Kante ruled out of Crystal Palace clash

The 19-year-old joined Potter at the Amex stadium shortly after Marc Cucurella went to SW6 on a permanent deal and Chelsea fought hard to ensure that the promising young centre-back would return to London at the end of the season.

Colwill was granted his debut under Potter but has still made less than half an hour of league minutes so far and his future has been further complicated now by Roberto De Zerbi's appointment. Although he may follow similar fundamental beliefs with Potter, having to impress a new manager and convince him to prioritise minutes to a loan player will be a challenge.

In order to get the most out of the loan, Chelsea may well have to rethink the plan in January. Much like Callum Hudson-Odoi, who is being spoken about as a potential returnee during winter in order to bolster Potter's plans, any deal would have to be of the player's benefit, and there may yet still be some interesting options available to Colwill.

According to Italian publication Calcio Mercato, several Serie A sides would be keen on taking Colwill on themselves if a deal can be reached in the next transfer window. The report states that Napoli and Atalanta both made their interest clear over the summer as well as champions AC Milan.

The Premier League and Brighton was the preferred destination though and now Chelsea may be forced to turn to previous options to help Colwill get the most out of this season away from the club. There could also be the chance that he returns to Cobham and stays on with Chelsea should Potter see enough gametime for him.

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