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Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has promised young striker Armando Broja more game time this season with the player expected to remain at Stamford Bridge, as per football.London.
Broja spent last season on loan at Southampton and impressed during the campaign at St Mary's Stadium. He made 38 appearances for the Saints, scoring nine goals and laying out one assist.
There had been speculation he could be on the move this summer with a lack of game time at Chelsea anticipated. However, the aforementioned report claims that Tuchel has promised the Albanian forward more minutes for the Blues this season.
Broja will get a fair chance to try and break into the west London side's starting XI.
Following the exits of Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner to Inter Milan on loan and RB Leipzig respectively, Broja's chances do appear brighter.
It leaves Tuchel with a lack of options in his attack and Broja could make the most of it this season. The young striker got 15 minutes during Chelsea's season-opener against Everton on August 7.
Chelsea's lack of options up front could lead to Broja becoming a regular
Broja may be in line to gain more first-team opportunities by default given Lukaku and Werner's exits.
Lukaku's return to the Blues for a club-record £97.8 million last season ended in fractious circumstances. The Belgian striker did manage to finish as top scorer for the Stamford Bridge side with 15 goals in 43 appearances.
Werner managed 11 goals in 37 games for Tuchel's side last season but a joint 26 goals between the pair was not good enough for a club of Chelsea's standards.
The Albanian can get further chances which can aid him developing into a top Premier League player and may be able to make the striker's position at the Bridge his own.
Tuchel has previously commented on Broja's situation, saying (via Chelsea's official website):
‘I don’t expect him to leave. We are aware of interest and offers, which just tells us there is a lot of potential, and the owners and me will take this decision together in the end, also with the player."
He added:
‘Right now when he arrived, it’s clear he’s trying to impress and is just trying to become a Chelsea player as soon as possible. After his loan at Southampton, the situation was very clear for him to make the next step, to show his improvement and make an impression in pre-season."
