Alan Shearer has praised Levi Colwill after Chelsea's loss to Man City, claiming he may have played himself into England's World Cup squad.
Colwill suffered a devastating anterior cruciate ligament injury in training last August, which required surgery and ruled him out of contention for seven months. It meant the 23-year-old never played a single minute under Liam Rosenior, with Chelsea’s Club World Cup final victory over Paris Saint-Germain representing his most recent appearance prior to his return earlier this month.
Calum McFarlane eased Colwill back into the fold with a 45-minute showing in the Blues’ loss to Nottingham Forest, before starting the centre-back in the side’s 1-1 draw at Liverpool. Get previews of every single team at the World Cup sent directly to your inbox, featuring the players to look out for, games you shouldn’t miss and Metro’s big England predictions.
Don't miss out, Colwill would no doubt have been delighted to have come through the contest unscathed and the England international continued his run in McFarlane’s starting XI for Saturday’s final against City. While Antoine Semenyo’s sublime 72nd-minute finish proved the difference in the capital, Colwill was able to emerge with his head held high after an impressive all-round display at the heart of a back-three with Wesley Fofana and Jorrel Hato.
Facing the media today, McFarlane heaped praise on Colwill but underlined how the club ‘need to be careful’ with the England international’s reassimilation given the severity of his knee injury. Colwill has played every minute of Chelsea’s last two matches against Liverpool and Manchester City ‘We need to be careful with Levi,’ he told reporters ahead of Chelsea’s penultimate match of the campaign at home to bitter rivals Tottenham.
‘He’s obviously off the back of a very serious injury and has performed well in those two games. We’ll see how he looks today, how he reports, and we’ll make a decision on that.
‘It’s been great to have him back, great for English football as well. I think we’ve got a really talented, really high-potential player here.
‘Injuries are a part of it, and he’s shown really good mental strength and character to come through that and perform away at Anfield and in an FA Cup final. ’ The Chelsea interim boss added: ‘We’re really, really excited about Levi and he’s added a lot to the team, not just on the pitch, but off the pitch as well.
Tuchel is set to name his 26-man England squad on Friday It wasn’t just McFarlane that Colwill impressed either, with Shearer making sure to praise the centre-half’s showing up against the likes of Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Semenyo.
Semenyo’s exquisite goal proved decisive at Wembley Shearer did, though, point out that there was an element of ‘risk’ involved if Thomas Tuchel opted to name both Colwill and John Stones in his Asked if the length of Colwill’s injury layoff should be seen as a concern, the ex-England and Newcastle striker replied: ‘In terms of an injury, if you’re going to takeGet previews of every single team at the World Cup sent directly to your inbox, featuring the players to look out for, games you shouldn’t miss and Metro’s big England predictions.
Having never had the opportunity to play under Rosenior, Colwill will be eager to hit the ground running when Xabi Alonso takes over the reins later this summer. Chelsea put weeks of speculation to bed on Sunday as it was confirmed that Alonso had put pen to paper on a four-year contract at Stamford Bridge. The former Liverpool midfielder has been out of a job since being dismissed by Real Madrid back in mid-January.
‘I think the big difference, and I think it’s a really notable difference, is that he’s been named the Chelsea manager rather than the Chelsea coach,’ Shearer – the Premier League’s all-time top goalscorer – said of the appointment. ‘And he’s never going to be in a stronger position than he is at the minute, when they desperately want him, in terms of getting everything right in his contract.
‘I think that’s really noticeable that he’s the Chelsea manager so I guess he’s going to have a lot more say: who goes in, who comes out, how the club is run. ‘I don’t think he would have taken it if that wasn’t the case because under the way it’s currently run, clearly that would be a massive gamble for him and one that he probably wasn’t prepared to take.
’Granit Xhaka reveals difference between Mikel Arteta and new Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso According to Shearer, Alonso will be looking to bring a sense of stability back to Chelsea after what has been a ‘bonkers’ period for the club.
‘I guess he’s got everything in black and white, he’s going to have a major say and rightly so because it’s a bonkers football club up until now,’ he continued. ‘He can see that, it doesn’t take a genius to work it out. Everyone can see it so I guess it was really important from his point of view that he got those bits ironed out.
’ Get previews of every single team at the World Cup sent directly to your inbox, featuring the players to look out for, games you shouldn’t miss and Metro’s big England predictions. Louis Sealey'Like a child' - Roy Keane slams Man Utd star after Nottingham Forest winWayne Rooney slams Chelsea over 'very strange' Arsenal and Man Utd transfers
Sport Alan Shearer Chelsea FC England Men's Football Team FA Cup Levi Colwill Manchester City FC Thomas Tuchel World Cup
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