Why a move from Everton to Chelsea would ruin Ross Barkley’s career

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The Sun believe that Ross Barkley could be subject to interest from Chelsea as Antonio Conte looks to rebuild his squad with a greater homegrown contingent. Of the six players to be registered as homegrown for Chelsea’s Premier League squad, three have left with Nathaniel Chalobah, Asmir Begovic and John Terry all having departed.

That could help to bring Barkley to Stamford Bridge. However, it could be a disastrous career move for the Everton man which would see him converted to little more than a squad filler to meet the homegrown registration quota.

Barkley excels when playing in an attacking midfield role, one which simply doesn’t exist in Antonio Conte’s system. That would mean that he would either have to bide his time and hope for a change in set-up or even a change in management, or try to fit in as a square peg in a round hole up-front or in midfield.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino feels that he could adapt Barkley to become a deeper midfielder, according to The Times. That may be possible at Stamford Bridge, but given the club’s poor record of being patient and giving young players a chance, it seems unlikely that he would be given the time to adapt and make mistakes.

Given Antonio Conte’s clear reluctance to rotate his side, it is hard to imagine just when Barkley would have his opportunity to impress, let alone to develop into an established option in a new position. To put himself in such a situation in a World Cup year would be tantamount to giving up any faint hope of making Gareth Southgate’s England squad. That would be the first step to obscurity, as the likes of Jack Rodwell have discovered.

With the likes of Spurs clearly proposing such a convincing option, it would be a real risk for Barkley to move to Chelsea. When a player is targeted for his homegrown status, rather than what he would bring to the side, it is often a cause for concern. In this case, it seems that it would be a real gamble for Barkley to make the move to west London.