18-year-old Cobham starlet returns to Chelsea after a successful loan spell in mainland Europe

Chelsea academy star Thierno Ballo returns from loan spell with Rapid Vienna

According to the club’s official website, Chelsea youth midfielder Thierno Ballo returned from his loan spell at Rapid Vienna ahead of the January transfer window. With the winter transfer window now shut, it looks set that he will stay at Stamford Bridge for the remainder of the season.

The attacking midfielder has not yet made a senior appearance for the first team, having spent the first half of the current campaign developing his skills in the Austrian Bundesliga. He returns from Rapid Vienna mid-season, having helped the club to fifth place in the league, pushing for Champions League qualification ahead of next season.

Unlike many of his fellow academy stars, Ballo did not come up through the ranks at Cobham from a very young age. The Austrian under-21 player only joined Chelsea’s academy in January 2018, from Viktoria Koln, who play in the third division of Germany’s football pyramid.

The player made 13 appearances for Rapid Vienna, including three in the Europa League. Ballo came across London rivals West Ham in the continental competition but could not prevent his side from tasting defeat against the Hammers. The Austrian only managed a substitute appearance against the Premier League side, although it will surely prove massive in his first-team experience against a top-flight English club.

Future Chelsea star?

In the coming months, the newly turned 20-year-old could now look to work his way up from the development squad into the first team under manager Thomas Tuchel. Cobham products have come through the senior squad and established themselves in recent times. It remains to be seen if Ballo follows in their footsteps.

Having spent the first half of the campaign in his native Austria, the window has now shut on the player departing on another loan spell this month. He is expected to link up with the development squad once again and try to catch the eye of Tuchel with his performances.

Chelsea have also recently recalled senior team player Kenedy from his loan spell from Brazil, with Tuchel indicating he needs cover at left-back for the remainder of the campaign after Ben Chilwell was ruled out of action for the season due to injury. It is unclear whether Ballo has been recalled for a similar situation, although the Blues do not need any depth in midfield at the moment.

With the Austrian seemingly out of contract in June 2022, time may be running out for Ballo to impress Tuchel and work his way into the German boss’s plans. Our midfield boasts of world-class players that cannot be dropped at the moment, but in case of a shake-up or injury crisis in the coming weeks, Ballo could sneak his way into the side.

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For now, the player will need to impress at Cobham to make the club take notice of his ability and tie him down for a few more years. We have seen academy stars like Tino Livramento and Tariq Lamptey leave us in recent years in search of regular first-team football elsewhere, and Ballo could be destined to do the same.

Recent months have seen Tuchel hand opportunities to Ballo’s Cobham teammates Lewis Hall and Harvey Vale to represent the academy in the senior squad, so there may still be hope for the Austrian to follow their path and make a senior appearance. The next FA Cup clash may be one to watch to see if Ballo gets a call-up which could change his fortunes at the club.