Former Chelsea defender Michael Mancienne says he’s glad he decided to leave the Blues earlier in his career due to the lack of opportunities for youngsters at the club.
The 29-year-old, now with Nottingham Forest, is preparing to take on his old club in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night, and hit out at their system ahead of the game.
Mancienne made only six first-team appearances for Chelsea during the 2008/09 season, and says none of the other academy players coming through at that time got a look-in either.
The former England Under-21 international took a gamble by moving to German club Hamburg in 2011, and has since kicked on in the Championship with Forest.
Despite not yet making it at the top level, Mancienne insists it was right for him to leave Chelsea when he did.
‘I was in the comfort zone at Chelsea and it is easy for players to rot away in that environment,’ he said.
‘When you’re at a big club you can easily get caught in a bubble because everything is done for you. There are so many people doing things for you that when you go out on loan you’re thrown into real life.
‘I was 21 when I made my debut and it was great moment. I thought it would be the time when I kicked on but there were too many players in front of me, many of them captains for their countries.
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‘The likes of John Terry, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole and Joe Cole were the best role models to have, and seeing people like John break into the first team obviously gave you that hope and desire to do the same thing.
‘But I don’t think there is one player from the academy in or around my age group that is still there. Ryan Bertrand, Jack Cork and Sam Hutchinson have all left, and Liam Bridcutt is with me now at Forest.
‘I had to make a decision because I wanted to make a name for myself and play games.’
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