Chelsea risk repeating their Fikayo Tomori mistake as their splurge on centre-backs this summer has left young talent Levi Colwill seemingly certain to depart following his successful loan spell away from Stamford Bridge.
The 19-year-old defender was earmarked for a potential role in the first-team setup this season, having appeared 32 times for Huddersfield as he helped them into the Championship play-off final, where they ultimately fell short last time out.
However, the imminent arrival of Kalidou Koulibaly, as well as the increasingly likely looking moves for Manchester City centre-back Nathan Ake and PSG's Presnel Kimpembe, have seen Colwill slip further down the pecking order.
At present, the trio, alongside Thiago Silva, Trevoh Chalobah and Malang Sarr, sit ahead of Colwill, and those prospects are showing few signs of improving before the end of the transfer window.
Tomori shows error of ways
Of course, Chelsea have already made this mistake twice previously. In January 2020, they let Fikayo Tomori join AC Milan on an initial loan deal with an option to buy, and the defender has gone on to excel, becoming a key cornerstone of the Milan side as they lifted the Scudetto in 2021-22.
To a lesser extent, the error can be seen in the form of Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi, too, who joined the Eagles from Chelsea last summer and has already become integral to Patrick Vieira's side, captaining Palace towards the end of the campaign.
In the meantime, Thomas Tuchel has seen his defensive options reduce drastically, to the extent that they have been forced to target three additions in the first place. It has meant that the vicious circle is set to continue.