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Despite seeing their side slip to an agonising late defeat to France in their opening game of the U21 European Championships, England's Fikayo Tomori and Jake Clarke-Salter could come out of that game with their heads held high. Indeed, if they can keep that kind of form up then Chelsea could potentially have a superb centre-back partnership for years to come.

What's the word?

Chelsea's notorious history with sending shed loads of players out on loan has had mixed success in recent seasons. A number of factors can often decide how well they do and for some the experience can be hugely detrimental; but for others, like Tomori and Clarke-Salter, it could be the start of a long career.

Tomori was impressive whilst away at Derby last season and consequently picked up the Rams' Player of the Season award. On the other hand, Clarke-Salter spent the previous campaign in the Netherlands with SBV Vitesse and made a total of 37 appearances.

And with Chelsea's prospective transfer ban stopping them from making any signings this summer, Tuesday's night game for England could have been a major glimpse on how the Blues defence could be in the future.

On the chalkboard

Possession has been the name of the game for the best part of the 21st century in football amid the ever-growing demand to have defenders and goalkeepers play out from the back. Just like their contemporaries, Tomori and Clarke-Salter have well and truly embraced that need.

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On Tuesday night, the duo boasted an impressive 91.4% and 93% pass accuracy whilst they both had over 80 touches in the match; the top two for the Young Lions. As Tomori will attest to having just played under him, potential new manager Frank Lampard will want his players to be good passers from defence, aiming to break the lines with their incision.

Having seen France play a high-line, Tomori and Clarke-Salter tried to take advantage of it with some well-placed longer balls over the opposition defence; out of their 18 attempts combined, 11 found their man and but for some profligate finishing either could have ended up with an assist.

At Stamford Bridge, the duo will find themselves playing with the likes of Michy Batshuayi and Tammy Abraham up front, where their knack for running behind the lines could really bring the best out of the ball-playing centre-halves.

So whilst Chelsea might despair about their transfer ban, Tomori and Clarke-Salter could form a formidable, modern-day partnership at the back.