I did a ‘Where Are They Now‘ piece on Lincoln’s last outing at the Bank against Luton, and it did quite well.
To ‘celebrate’ tonight’s big cup tie, I’ve decided to do another, but this time, have a look at what happened to the Chelsea players who appeared against City in the EFL Trophy.
The Checkatrade, as it was known then, was, and still is, despised by many, but it’s interesting to see if Chelsea’s Under 21 side from eight years ago actually went on to achieve all that much.
Did we beat a team of future stars? Or were they destined for a career traversing the London non-league scene, squeezing an existence out of the fact that they once played for the Chelsea academy? You’re about to find out.
First XI
59 (G) Marcin Bulka
After coming through the Chelsea ranks, Bulka moved to PSG in France. Several loans followed before a spell at Nice, where he made 70 Ligue 1 appearances. He’s now with Neom in Saud Arabiai, and has five caps for Poland.
50 (D) Trevoh Chalobah
England international Chalobah has remained with the Blues. Loan spells with Ipswich, Huddersfield Town, Lorient and Palace led him to first team football at Stamford Bridge.
56 (D) Richard Nartey
Nartey didn’t make it. His most regular football came on loan at Burton Albion in 2019/20, while spells at Salford and Burnley were not successful. He last appeared for Barnet, but no before taking a year out to become a property developer.
60 (D) Juan Familia-Castillo
Castillo didn’t appear for Chelsea, but he had a lot of loans, with Jong Ajax, AZ Alkmaar, Jong AZ, ADO Den Haag, Birmingham City, and Charlton Athletic. After playing for the Netherlands up to Under 20, he switched to the Dominican Republic, while he now plays permanently for RKC Waalwijk in the Eredivisie.
66 (D) Dujon Sterling (subbed 60)
Right back Sterling also had numerous loans, Coventry, Wigan, Blackpool and Stoke among the clubs he appeared for. He didn’t make the grade at Stamford Bridge, but has made 44 SPFL appearances for his current club, Glasgow Rangers.
44 (M) Ethan Ampadu
mpadu played once for Chelsea before a series of loans with RB Leipzig, Sheffield United, Venezia and Spezia. He left permanently in 2023, becoming captain at Leeds United and a key figure for Wales.
46 (M) Ruben Sammut (subbed 89)
Sammut never made a senior appearance for Chelsea and moved on after academy success. He had a loan spell at Falkirk, short stints with Sunderland and Dulwich Hamlet, and is now a senior scout back at Chelsea.
57 (M) Harvey St Clair
St Clair left Chelsea in 2018 without a senior appearance, moving to Italy with Venezia before loans at Kilmarnock, Seregno, Triestina and Vis Pesaro. After leaving Venezia, he joined FC Tulsa in the USL Championship, where he continues his career as a winger.
64 (M) Reece James
Unlike many of his academy teammates, James became a Chelsea first-teamer after a standout loan at Wigan, establishing himself at right-back and later being named club captain. He has lifted major trophies with Chelsea (Champions League, Super Cup, Club World Cup and Conference League) and is a senior England international.
70 (M) Callum Hudson-Odoi
Broke into Chelsea’s first team and lifted major trophies before a season on loan with Bayer Leverkusen. Later joined Nottingham Forest permanently, established himself as a regular goalscoring winger and later extended his deal. He’s also been capped by England.
73 (F) Daishawn Redan
Redan left without a senior Blues appearance. Moved to Hertha BSC and took loans to Groningen and PEC Zwolle, where he hit form in the Eredivisie (Talent of the Month) before a stint with Utrecht. Switched to Italy with Venezia and scored regularly on loan at Triestina, then signed for Avellino.
Substitutes Used
54 (M) Jacob Maddox (on 60)
Another who didn’t make a senior Blues appearance. After loans (Cheltenham, Tranmere, Southampton U23s), he left permanently for Vitória de Guimarães in Portugal and later returned to England with a loan at Burton Albion. He then had EFL spells at Walsall and Forest Green Rovers before dropping to the National League with Yeovil Town, where he’s currently a central midfield option.
Unused Substitutes
72 (G) Nicolas Tié
After leaving Chelsea he joined Vitória Guimarães in Portugal, making a couple of appearances for their B side. In April 2025 he retired from football at just 24, announcing he had joined the French Army with the 1st Parachute Hussar Regiment.
51 (D) Joseph Colley
Colley left Chelsea in 2019 for Italy with Chievo, before heading back to Sweden on loan with IK Sirius. He has since become a regular at Wisła Kraków in Poland, winning the 2024 Polish Cup.
52 (D) Cole DaSilva
After leaving Chelsea he joined Brentford B, then moved briefly to Leicester’s U23s before a stint in Croatia with HNK Šibenik. Back in England he’s carved out a solid non-league career with Oxford City, Hemel Hempstead, Royston Town, Biggleswade Town and Bedford Town, and is now a key full-back at Bishop’s Stortford, where he swept club player-of-the-year honours.
43 (M) Isaac Christie-Davies
Left for Liverpool and made a senior debut in the League Cup, then had short spells with Cercle Brugge and Barnsley, plus a loan to DAC Dunajská Streda in Slovakia. Found regular football at Eupen in Belgium (close to 40 league games) and, after a year without a club, joined the PFA training camp while seeking his next move.
53 (M) Josh Grant
After Chelsea, he cut his teeth on loan at Yeovil and Plymouth (part of Argyle’s promotion push) before four seasons at Bristol Rovers as a versatile CB/DM, contributing to their 2021–22 promotion despite injury-hit spells. Dropped to the National League with Wealdstone to reboot, then earned a move back into the EFL pyramid with Carlisle United.
48 (F) Kylian Hazard
Hazard made his name in Belgium after the Blues: loan and permanent at Cercle Brugge. He moved across Brussels to RWDM (helped them win promotion), had a short loan at Beveren, a season back at Tubize-Braine, and is now with RFC Liège. His career was detoured by an ACL in 2023, but he’s since returned to regular minutes.