5 Players Who Chelsea Should Loan Out In January

To take a break from my 'who's on offer' series, I will be looking at five players that Chelsea should loan out in January to make room for any new signings and for those players that do go on loan, to gain valuable experience or just game time in general. Chelsea are famous for being very strict and blunt with players and staff. If you're under performing or not part of the plans then you're off. With that in mind, it's highly likely that Chelsea will either sell or loan out players to reduce their squad size and introduce the reserve players if they have to. I haven't listed them as being sold because I could only see one or two players that could be which isn't much of a list in all honesty:

1. Kevin de Bruyne

The young Belgian has been linked with a move away from Chelsea for quite some time now and it seems as though he may be on his way out in January if the Blues listen to what Eden Hazard said about sending the player on loan. He is a very highly rated player based on his performances while on loan, however, since returning to the club, he hasn't really featured for Chelsea which has prompted many into believing that he will be sold or loaned. Atletico Madrid and Wolfsburg have all registered an interest in him.

2. Ryan Bertrand

'The next Ashley Cole' or the 'future of England's left back position' are just a couple of tags that have been given to the player since he made his first appearance for Chelsea. However, those appearances have dried up recently because Ashley Cole is still performing well and Cesar Azpilicueta is covering him if he's not around. The 24-year-old needs a loan spell to prove to Mourinho that he should be considered next season as a replacement for Cole if he leaves. A mid-table Premier League side should do wonders for him.

3. Tomas Kalas

The 20-year-old has been as much a part of the team as De Bruyne or Bertrand but he could well be the one that's most likely to stay out of these three. Chelsea have plenty of options for centre back with John Terry, Gary Cahill, David Luiz and Branislav Ivanovic, but an injury to one of those players and Kalas could be in with a shout of at least making the bench. The Czech will probably go on loan to the Eredivisie again as that seems to be the league he'll receive the most game time in.

4. Michael Essien

He somehow managed to engineer a move to Real Madrid last season, which baffles everyone to this day but, regardless, he still played for them, showing there is still life in his old legs yet. However, he has just two appearances this season for the Blues despite no injuries, with Mourinho seemingly avoiding using him. If he wants to prove to Mourinho that he should be kept at Chelsea for the 2014/2015 campaign then has to find a club that are willing to take him on loan and play him regularly, otherwise you can't help but feel his time will be up come the summer.

5. Demba Ba

The Senegalese international made a bad decision by joining Chelsea in January because his career has gone downhill since his days at Newcastle and West Ham. Arsenal were heavily linked with a move for him during the final days of the summer transfer window but, unfortunately for Ba, a move never materialised. If he wants to ressurect his career then a loan move will be the best option for him, providing he still wants a future at the Blues.