By Agencies
Highly-rated Zimbabwean striker Shumaira Mheuka, 17, made his Chelsea debut on Thursday evening, coming on as a 78th minute substitute as they won 3-1 at Astana of in the Uefa Conference League.
Mheuka has moved quickly through the ranks of the Chelsea Academy since joining the Blues from Brighton & Hove Albion at the end of his Under-14s season.
Throughout the 2023/24 campaign, he was given regular appearances for the Under-18s, while still a schoolboy.
He scored 12 goals in his 20 appearances for that side across all competitions, including his first Stamford Bridge appearance when he played in the Under-18 Premier League national final against Manchester United.
Mheuka was an important player for England in the summer’s European Under-17 Championship, scoring in their opener against Spain, and marked his first call-up for the Under-19s by finding the net against both France and the Netherlands earlier this month.
After going full-time as a scholar at Chelsea in the summer, the striker has become an important part of the London club’s Under-21s squad this season and netted his first goal at that level in the 6-0 win over Fulham in the Premier League 2 at the start of October.