Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia has been through a lot for a 20-year-old.
Aged just 16, the Belgian left Anderlecht to join Manchester City in 2020, but the Covid pandemic meant he moved without his family.
Then, aged 18, and with only two senior City appearances, Lavia pushed for a move to Southampton – and suffered relegation with them in 2023.
He was still only 19 when he became part of Chelsea’s spending spree that summer, becoming the 23rd player signed by the club’s new ownership. But after his £53m move to Stamford Bridge, Lavia managed just 29 minutes under former boss Mauricio Pochettino as injuries ruined his season.
“My mum never watched a game of mine at Man City,” Lavia said, reflecting on his lack of first-team chances as he started out. “That’s to tell you how hard it was but I never really complained because I knew what I was getting into, the same in every decision I’ve made.
“It’s never been a problem. Even with the injuries last season, it was tough but what can you do? Turn it into a positive.”
Lavia, who has one cap for Belgium, admitted to “frustrations” and feelings of “unfairness” over a frustrating first season at Chelsea, as a significant ankle injury in training was followed by a hamstring problem as he neared a return.
“I’d say that it was unlucky and I tried to catch up every time,” he said. “My body let me down a couple of times.”
However, this pre-season has offered a timely reminder to new head coach Enzo Maresca of Lavia’s qualities, in the lead-up to their Premier League opener at home to champions Manchester City on Sunday (16:30 BST).
Only Christopher Nkunku, Reece James, Malo Gusto and Levi Colwill played more minutes than Lavia during Chelsea’s tour of the United States, where he started all five games and got two assists.
In pre-season, he has been able to show the form that drove Chelsea to sign him from under the noses of Liverpool.
“I heard about Chelsea from a long time ago before that [deal] started,” said Lavia. “It was a no-brainer. The interest from Liverpool was there but in my head I wanted to play for Chelsea.”
Maresca knows Lavia’s pedigree, having worked with him when coaching Manchester City’s elite development squad.
“I had [playing alongside me] Rodri, Fernandinho, Kevin de Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva,” Lavia added. “These players could play in midfield and in different positions if needed and that’s something that when you look at it, you say, ‘wow, that’s the level.’
“They’re always putting their head down and working.”
Like Cole Palmer last year and Jadon Sancho before both of them, Lavia said he left City because he wanted first-team football.
“It was not a hard decision simply because I felt I was ready to play,” he said.
“I had a good conversation with the manager [Pep Guardiola] at the time and he said: ‘Listen, you’re young and you need to develop.’ He was honest about it.
“I felt like I could play and it was just about looking for the best opportunities to get to that stage as fast as possible.”
He looks poised to start at the base of Maresca’s midfield with two from Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall alongside him as more attacking number eights.
“I think we are building something amazing,” Lavia said. “Everyone at the club can feel it, not just the players but everyone.
“Man City and all the teams that have been successful, they needed years to do that. I’m not saying we need the same [amount of] years but it’s definitely going to take time. We are aware that it is not going to take two weeks.
“The confidence is there and if you look at all the teams, Chelsea is the one that is growing. Even though the results are not going how the other teams are doing at the moment, you can see the bigger picture.”