Chelsea’s brilliant run of results, which saw them beat the likes of Benfica, Nottingham Forest and Liverpool, came to a screeching halt on Saturday afternoon.

Instead of picking up another Premier League win against the recently promoted Sunderland, Enzo Maresca’s side managed to lose 2-1 thanks to a late goal from Chemsedine Talbi.

What is most frustrating about the game, though, is that while the West Londoners were not anywhere near their best, they still had chances to win, taking seven shots on target to the Black Cats’ four.

Unfortunately, they just didn’t have their shooting boots on, although with the striker situation at the club, that is hardly surprising.

So, there is an argument that Maresca should look to drop Marc Guiu and start one of Cobham’s most exciting prospects, a striker compared to the legendary Didier Drogba.

1

Goals

2

68%

Possession

32%

16

Total Shots

10

7

Shots on Target

4

629

Passes

293

10

Shots in the Box

7

8

Tackles

14

Chelsea's striker situation

In the summer, Chelsea decided to sell Christopher Nkunku to AC Milan and João Félix to Al-Nassr, while also loaning out David Datro Fofana to Karagümrük and Nicolas Jackson to Bayern Munich.

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Now, while these weren’t necessarily bad moves for the club, they did only sign Joao Pedro and Liam Delap to replace the leaving players, and when the latter went down with a hamstring injury earlier this season, they were forced to recall Marc Guiu from his loan with Sunderland.

Moreover, while nobody can question Pedro’s ability, it has become increasingly clear that his best position is just behind another striker, either as an advanced ten or a classic second striker.

In other words, due to their business and the injury to the former Ipswich Town star, Maresca has been forced to either use Pedro out of his best position, start the young Tyrique George up top when he’s a natural winger, or, as he has done recently, play Guiu.

To give the former Barcelona gem his credit, he did score against Ajax in the Champions League, but against the Black Cats on Saturday, he was poor.

In fact, the Spaniard was so underwhelming that the Standard’s Sam Tabuteau gave him just a 4/10 match rating, writing that he showed ‘plenty of energy but not a lot of finesse.’

In short, Chelsea really need another option up top this season, and while it would be a risk, it looks like Cobham might have the player for them – a player compared to Drogba.

Chelsea's future Drogba

Now, it should really go without saying that comparing a youngster to Drogba is not something that should be done lightly.

After all, the Ivorian icon was one of the best strikers to ever play in the Premier League and is most certainly a massive Chelsea legend.

With that said, there is plenty of excitement building around 18-year-old Shim Mheuka, so much so that one analyst has made the bold comparison, calling him “the new Didier Drogba.”

So then, what makes him such an exceptional talent, and one worthy of a proper run in the first team?

Well, simply put, he is starting to look like a real goal machine and potentially one of “Cobham’s finest” prospects, per talent scout Jacek Kulig.

For example, despite being just 16 at the start of last season, he ended the campaign with 11 goals and three assists to his name, 30 appearances across the U18S and U21S.

Moreover, he also got a few run-outs in the first team, making five appearances totalling 118 minutes across the Conference League and Premier League.

Appearances

59

Goals

31

Assists

8

Goal Involvements per Match

0.66

This season, he has taken another leap forward, and as things stand, he has already scored ten goals and provided two assists in just ten appearances, totalling 883 minutes for the U21S and Youth League sides.

That works out to an average of 1.2 goal involvements every game, or one every 73.58 minutes, and if that’s still not enough, he has also racked up a tally of ten goals and three assists in 18 appearances for England’s U19S.

Ultimately, while it is still so early in his career, it is becoming increasingly clear that he is a lethal goalscorer, and while he might not reach the level of a Drogba, he might be able to have a significant impact on the team this season.