Chelsea defender set for Championship loan

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca watched his side lose 2-0 against reigning Premier League champions Manchester City in his first game in charge on Sunday. 

The Italian, who worked as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at City, has endured a difficult pre-season with his new side, and they found themselves behind early on when Erling Haaland scored his first goal of the new campaign.

Former Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic then doubled the visitors’ lead at Stamford Bridge, ensuring City took all three points back to Manchester.

Now, it appears that one of Chelsea’s young players could be on his way to a Championship side.

According to Football Insider, Burnley have beaten second tier rivals Leeds United to the signing of centre-back Bashir Humphreys on loan.

Humphreys has been capped three times by England under-21s

The 21-year-old is a product of Chelsea’s youth academy, but has made just two senior appearances for the club across all competitions at senior level.

The Englishman spent last season on loan at Swansea City and impressed during his time with the Welsh side, making 26 appearances.

He has also previously spent time in Germany with Paderborn, where he played 13 times.

It is claimed that both the Clarets and the Whites submitted offers for the central defender, although the former are now set to sign him for the remainder of the season after a breakthrough in talks.

Humphreys is contracted to the Blues until the end of the 2026/27 season, but he is set to leave Stamford Bridge for the rest of the current campaign as he is not part of Maresca’s plans and isn’t guaranteed regular game time.