Chelsea defender Malo Gusto has started to show the reasons for why the Blues brought him in last summer. Will the French international be able to keep it up or will he fall into the current injury cycle of some of his team mates?
Malo Gusto, translating literally to 'bad taste' in Spanish, has started to pick up some current form towards the back end of this season and has had many Chelsea fans on the edge of thier seats.
An entertaining 1-1 draw against a persistently aggressive Manchester City, saw Chelsea's defence put to the test. Chelsea fans could be marginally disappointed by the result as they still lie slap bang in the middle of the table, but a defensively robust performance was the perfect opportunity for Malo Gusto to cut a dash on a Premier League stage.
A stunning performance by the young French international suggest Chelsea are in great hands for the future. Showcasing defensive responsibility and offensive flair he sparked hope in the Blues fans. With Reece James' current injury struggles they could be in a much better spot than they might have thought.
Malo Gusto was brought in by the club last January for a fee just shy of £30 million. Although the fee was processed and the transfer was announced, he was loaned back to Olympique Lyonnais for the remainder of the season. A resilient and agile full-back with attacking threat in abundance, the Frenchman was more than capable to accecpt his defensive duties without neglecting his attacking talent against a powerful City side.
The 20 year old was amongst the very best this weekend after acheiving a rating of 7.8 (on par with Rodri) according to WhoScored. Registering two key passes, three crosses into the final third and three long balls, his offensive stats were second to none during those 90 minutes. Defensively, Gusto completed ten clearences and eight tackles, which really emphasises the versitility in the Frenchman's game. Usually potent players such as Jeremy Doku, Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne were completely nullified by Gusto's performance.
With Reece James being out of action since late November and not expected back at Stamford Bridge until April, Malo Gusto could make a real statement to all doubting his ability to cover for James.
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