Chelsea set to appoint Swansea City director Josh Marsh as ‘loans manager’

With international regulations and our own methods of operations changing significantly over the past several years, the Chelsea “Loan Army” is no longer such a powerful force these days as it once might have been.

But as we’ve seen in the case of certain players, such as Reece James, Conor Gallagher, or Mason Mount, loan moves can still play an important and crucial step in player development, and thus need to be properly managed, both before and during an assignment. A bad loan can do as much damage (if not more) to a career as a good loan can help, and trying to minimize those bad outcomes is paramount to the overall endeavor.

With that in mind, it’s perhaps encouraging that we’re apparently looking to invest in that department as well. According to The Athletic, we’re set to appoint Josh Marsh as our new “loans manager”, presumably to work alongside or with Carlo Cudicini, who has been running things there for a while now. Carlo’s been in that department since 2019 (staying on after serving as assistant to Antonio Conte and Maurizio Sarri), but the supporting structure and personnel around him has been steadily shrinking.

Marsh has been the Head of Football Operations at Swansea City since 2022, but is expected transition to his Chelsea role next month. Prior to that, he served in various scouting roles at Huddersfield Town, Southampton, and Wolves. His brother Ed has been a Chelsea scout for the past nine years. Good eyes in that family!