On the whole, it’s been a disappointing season for Chelsea. Even victories in all of their final seven Premier League games – which seems unlikely – would see them end on a maximum of 68 points. Only twice between 2003-04 and 2018-19 did the Londoners end with less than that. This would be the third time in four seasons since then they have got 68 or less.
Of course it hasn’t been all doom and gloom. Chelsea can still reach an FA Cup final, which would give them chance to atone for their Carabao Cup heartbreak at Wembley, and Cole Palmer has been an absolute revelation. The signing from Manchester City has a staggering 36 direct goal involvements in 38 games.
Yet the fanfare around 21-year-old attacker has somewhat overshadowed the fact there is another Chelsea player who has had a decent 2023-24 campaign despite the team’s overall inconsistencies. That man is Malo Gusto, who it is easy to forget is still just 20 himself.
The France international, signed from Lyon for £26million in January 2023, has racked up 32 appearances and contributed an impressive eight assists from right-back. Filling in for the injured Reece James, Gusto has had a very respectable debut campaign given the troubles at Stamford Bridge.
He has impressed on both sides of the ball and perhaps most remarkably, has looked flawless in almost every match he’s played. The numbers back it up. Fbref’s scout report has Gusto in the top 93 percentile of full-backs in the main five leagues for assists, passes attempted, passes completed, progressive carries, touches and tackles.
Gusto is heavily involved and is highly effective when he’s involved, too. His only weakness is his aerial duels but very few of his Chelsea team-mates post better figures in terms of pass success, key passes made and tackle success.
And while the 6-0 defeat at Everton on Monday night was not his best performance of the campaign, the Frenchman showed his maturity as Nicolas Jackson stropped while trying to take the ball from Cole Palmer for the penalty. He was also chiefly involved in making sure the striker celebrated with Palmer after he converted his spot-kick.
It was the latest evidence of a mentality that has been crucial to the defender’s personal success at the Bridge so far. Gusto has been so good that Mauricio Pochettino will find it difficult to bench him for skipper James next season.
It might even be possible that he deploys a back three with James the right-sided centre-back and Gusto the wing-back. It would be quite unfair to drop the full-back, despite James’ class, given how well he has performed this term. He has massive promise.
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In the wider sphere of the Premier League, Gusto’s form has gone somewhat overlooked. That is partly due to Chelsea’s form as a team and partly because Palmer is the obvious headline-maker with his extraordinary contributions. Everyone has been too busy praising the No. 20 to praise his team-mate.
But Chelsea fans rightly recognise Gusto’s balanced displays. And he can still get a lot better, too. He admitted last month: “I have to say to myself that I am at Chelsea and I have a big chance to improve, to show my quality and just remember my chance – work hard every day, stay focused on everything and after, maybe I can become a great player.”
The west London club’s recruitment under Todd Boehly has been much-maligned. Palmer is the obvious success story. But they have another gem in Gusto too, and he deserves his flowers.
