
It has been reported that Cheltenham Town have taken midfielder Charlie Colkett on a week’s trial.
The former Chelsea academy player, has had previous loan spells at Bristol Rovers, Swindon Town, Vitesse, and Shrewsbury, but has most recently been playing in Sweden for Östersunds FK since 2019.
Colkett was part of the Chelsea youth side that recorded back-to-back wins in the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup in 2015 and 2016.
In his first loan out to Bristol Rovers in the 2016/17 campaign, what was the 25 year olds first taste of professional football, he rapidly became a fan favourite amongst the Gas fans.
He brought something that wasn’t often seen in League One football, a sense of flair and raw technical ability that you would only see in the higher divisions.
The former Chelsea youth captain was recalled by his parent club in that same season, and sent back out to fellow League One side Swindon Town.
The reasoning behind the debatable ‘sideways’ loan move was due to Swindon being a better outfit for him to develop, with the Wiltshire side attempting a footballing philosophy under head coach Luke Williams that would suit Colkett’s style.
However the loan was a struggle for the Chelsea loanee, as the Robins were in the thick of a difficult relegation battle.
It’s safe to say that the experience of fighting for survival would be something the midfielder would have never experienced before in the youth set up.
He did still show glimpses of his undeniable ability however, but his and his sides efforts were not enough to keep themselves up, and relegation to League Two followed.
A loan move to Dutch side Vitesse followed the season afterwards, however the loanee made only 6 appearances and his loan was terminated in January by Chelsea.
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His next move, what would be the last loan spell away from parent club Chelsea, was at League One side Shrewsbury in 2018. However this stint was even more disappointing, making only one league start before being recalled on New Years Eve.
Four years at Chelsea came to a close for Colkett as he signed for Östersunds FK in 2019 for a ‘small fee’ before going onto make 61 appearances for the Swedish side, scoring once.
As he looks for a return to English football, it is evident the ability is there, however for whatever reason his career hasn’t necessarily ignited as people would have hoped.
But at only 25 years of age, there is still plenty of time to get things kickstarted again, and a potential move to Cheltenham Town would be a good location to do so.