- PLUS: Why Chelsea’s midfield pair are partners both on and off the pitch
- Join Mail+ to read Chelsea Confidential every Wednesday, plus more exclusive scoops, in-depth coverage and analysis from Old Trafford
Difficult to say exactly how many goals have been scored by Donnell McNeilly for Chelsea’s youth sides over the years. There are various age groups, competitions, games official and unofficial.
What we do know is the 19-year-old London-born striker is good for a goal – bunches of them.
Whichever age group he has represented in recent seasons, he has routinely finished as that team’s leading scorer. He did it with the Under 16s in 2021-22. He did it with the Under 18s in 2022-23. He helped himself to 30 in total for the Under 18s and Under 21s in 2023-24.
Now this season, nobody in the Premier League 2 has more goals than McNeilly, who models his powerfully direct game on his Chelsea idol Didier Drogba. The Blues are fourth out of the 26 clubs competing in the PL2 after 18 games played, and McNeilly scored his 10th in that competition for the Under 21s in a 3-1 win away at Norwich last week.
Also involved in that victory were Shim Mheuka, Sam Rak-Sakyi, Kaiden Wilson, Kiano Dyer, Ishe Samuels-Smith, Genesis Antwi, Harrison Murray-Campbell and Ato Ampah – eight team-mates who have made Enzo Maresca’s matchday squads this season.
Yet there has been no such reward for McNeilly in return for his reliability. Not even in the Conference League, where an unlimited number of players eligible for their B list can be added to the squad. Some have found that strange, especially given Maresca has been without a senior striker since the start of February following injuries to Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu.
Chelsea starlet Donnell McNeilly has proven he can score in bunches for the Blues’ youth ranks
Whichever age group he has represented recently, he has finished as the team’s leading scorer
The impressive youngster is still yet to make a matchday squad under Enzo Maresca (above)
It was in November 2022 when McNeilly signed professional terms with Chelsea after turning 17. His contract expires at the end of this season. Confidential has been told the Premier League club have tabled a new deal for his consideration. He has not signed it.
Probably, having noticed his peers being rewarded with senior call-ups, the teenager has not seen proof of a pathway for himself. Without those assurances, you could forgive McNeilly for feeling a natural reluctance to commit his future to Chelsea. The sense among some sources is that the reward should come first, not after you have agreed to give them your next five years.
When Josh Acheampong was in his own contract stand-off with Chelsea, he was provided an overview of the project. After his deal was announced on December 18, Chelsea confirmed the very next day that he and Tyrique George had been permanently promoted to the senior squad.
Acheampong had already appeared for Chelsea’s first team when the 18-year-old defender committed himself to the club until 2029, but McNeilly has not had that opportunity.
Unless something changes, the kid who has called Cobham his home since age 11 – and consistently topped their academy scoring charts on his way to adulthood – will be leading the line for someone new as of next season.
Maresca’s sales pitch to £40m wonderkid ahead of 2026 move
It was a 5-0 loss away at Arsenal which went some way to pushing Mauricio Pochettino to the exit door after a single season at Chelsea. Though Maresca likewise lost his visit to the Emirates Stadium – by a much more narrow margin of 1-0 – there remains optimism surrounding his appointment on a five-year deal with the option of a sixth.
So much so that sources in the camp of Geovany Quenda say Maresca spoke personally with the 17-year-old winger of Sporting CP before that £40million deal was revealed last week. That sales pitch from Chelsea’s head coach says something, considering the teenager is not due to arrive in London until the summer of 2026 as he will spend another season in Portugal first.
We are told Maresca gave Quenda a message of confidence over the course of their conversation, telling him to keep evolving, learning and improving. He added that he is trusted as someone perfect for the Chelsea project and that he is looking forward to working with him in the future.
Todd Boehly and Chelsea’s owners remain somewhat optimistic about Maresca’s appointment
The Blues suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat against Arsenal ahead of the international break
Maresca gave 17-year-old prospect Geovany Quenda a sales pitch before the deal was secured
KDH with the PFA
Speak to those who have worked with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and they will describe the 26-year-old as a thinker. Has been ever since he was a scholar at Leicester. Very switched on.
Continuing this theme, Dewsbury-Hall is already looking towards life after football, as he is currently putting himself through the PFA Business School’s sporting directorship course.
Led by Les Reed and Andoni Zubizarreta, it is a two-year programme involving two-hour virtual sessions every two weeks and four sessions in person per year. It costs circa £11,800 to complete.
Estevao’s team for the Club World Cup confirmed
Palmeiras insiders have told Confidential that 17-year-old wonderkid Estevao Willian will play for them at this summer’s Club World Cup rather than Chelsea. We asked the Brazilian club via our man on the ground, Josue Seixas.
Estevao is considered one of the best in the world for his age, and is set to join Chelsea this summer for an initial fee worth £29m.
The Chelsea XI that could be sold to fund super striker signing
Chelsea want to sign a striker this summer and whoever they try to fund, we can confirm the Premier League club will need to sell to satisfy Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) restrictions.
Work is already underway in that regard as they build towards another busy summer of trading.
They have no shortage of options for potential sales – so many that you could practically make an XI out of a sellable list which includes Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Trevoh Chalobah, Kepa Arrizabalaga, David Datro Fofana, Joao Felix, Axel Disasi and Renato Veiga.
Raheem Sterling leads a long list of Chelsea stars who could be sold to raise funds this summer
Like Sterling, Ben Chilwell is currently out on loan and will be high on Chelsea’s chopping block
Carney Chukwuemeka is currently on loan at Borussia Dortmund, who have a buy option. As do Everton with Armando Broja and the same goes for Santos with Deivid Washington.
Southampton will need to negotiate if they want to keep Lesley Ugochukwu, while it is unclear what will happen next with Alfie Gilchrist once his loan with Sheffield United is over.
Others such as Christopher Nkunku and Dewsbury-Hall could also leave if opportunities arrive for them. There are no plans to lose Enzo Fernandez, however, despite Real Madrid links.
CHELSEA’S SELLABLE XI: Arrizabalaga; Gilchrist, Chalobah, Disasi, Chilwell; Sterling, Veiga, Chukwuemeka, Felix; Broja, Fofana
Fernandez and Caicedo partnered on and off the pitch
Fernandez and Moises Caicedo are not only midfield partners on the pitch. They are connected away from it as Fernandez has signed up to the same marketing agency as Caicedo.
They are now both with Vanquish, who will work on managing their outside images. That includes their press, social media, content, business developments and commercialisation interests.
Watch Chelsea train for £3k
Chelsea are flogging two VIP tickets for fans to watch the first team in training at Cobham. With the starting bid currently at £3,000 – and the auction closing this Friday – the proceeds will go to the Chelsea Foundation.
The two guests will also get to meet players after the session.
It turns out Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo are partners both on and off the football pitch
No to touters, yes to shouters
Chelsea sent an email to season-ticket holders this week explaining how they are tackling ticket touts.
Forwarded on to Confidential, the club capped up certain words for emphasis, such as how they have ‘STOPPED’ over 1,000 people with touted tickets from entering Stamford Bridge, ‘CANCELLED’ more than 1,500 membership accounts linked to such activity, and ‘ARRESTED’ wrongdoers on match-days. This follows the furore surrounding Todd Boehly and Vivid Seats.
Supporters have been concerned by the atmosphere at games, and some feel it is linked to the number of tourists who turn up. When Chelsea face Legia Warsaw in their Conference League quarter-final second leg at Stamford Bridge on April 17, there will be another trial of a singing section, this time incorporating 150 season-ticket holders bunched together in the Shed Upper.
Such an initiative is not an option during Premier League matches as the section is taken up by regulars, but it has internal backing from those inside of Chelsea in cup ties.