PROFILE | A rapid rise for Chelsea loanee Mamadou Sarr | OneFootball

Mamadou Sarr’s career has dramatically changed within the space of two seasons from being a sporadic option at Lyon to being signed by Chelsea. The France youth international made the decision to leave his boyhood club and join Strasbourg. Since arriving within the BlueCo umbrella of clubs, the centre back has not looked back and gone from strength to strength. 

Before joining Chelsea, Sarr originally signed for Strasbourg. Despite only making three appearances for Les Gones, the 20-year-old was fast-tracked straight to the first team upon arrival at the Stade de la Meinau. Last season, his first at the Alsace club, the centre back made 28 appearances across all competitions. He didn’t look out of place either. Under the management of Liam Rosenior, the Frenchman became a regular feature and a reliable figure for the former Hull City coach. Most of Sarr’s senior experience before last season came whilst on loan at RWD Molenbeek, where he made six appearances for OL’s sister club. 

A lack of senior experience hasn’t fazed the defender. One wouldn’t have noticed the 20-year-old’s lack of senior experience either. In possession, the former Lyon defender is a superb passer of the ball. Only Lucas Beraldo has a greater pass accuracy than the Strasbourg loanee in Ligue 1 – Sarr’s passing accuracy sits at 94.3%. 

Sarr makes Chelsea debut

After impressing in his first season at Strasbourg, Chelsea wasted no time in securing his services. The centre back travelled with the Premier League club to the FIFA Club World Cup in the USA during the summer after signing for the Stamford Bridge club. In addition to forming part of the squad, Enzo Maresca handed the defender his debut as an 82nd-minute substitute in a 3-0 victory against Esperance. Fresh from winning his first trophy in senior football, Sarr was loaned back to Strasbourg to help the Racing club in European football and to further his development. 

Now on loan at the Alsatian outfit, the OL academy graduate continues to play a huge role under Rosenior and has experienced his first taste of European football in the UEFA Conference League. Following an impressive start to life back in France, Sarr will be hoping to continue that trajectory before fighting for a place in the first team back at Chelsea.

GFFN | Liam Wraith