Pochettino: Colwill is 'going to be part of Chelsea' despite Brighton's interest
Levi Colwill 'can be one of the greatest centre-backs in England', according to high praise from his new Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino - who insists the defender is going nowhere, despite interest from Brighton.
The Blues came from behind to beat Brighton 4-3 in a seven-goal thriller at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, USA, on Saturday. Nicolas Jackson earned Player-of-the-Match for his performance, scoring his first Chelsea goal in the game.
But Pochettino was clear to praise 20-year-old Colwill for his defending, after lining up against a Brighton side where he spent last season on loan.
After the game, the new Chelsea boss was asked a question about Colwill's future, to which he sternly replied: 'We don't need to make a statement about nothing. He's our player and he's going to continue with us.
'I am happy with him, his performance was good today, better than what I expected because it's only the first game with us after the season in Brighton.
'But I think he can be one of the greatest centre-backs in England.
'He is going to be part of our team.'
Colwill was making his first pre-season appearance for Chelsea this summer, after sitting out the club's 5-0 win over Wrexham in midweek.
He played 81 minutes of the Premier League Summer Series match, before being withdrawn and replaced by Lewis Hall.
Christopher Nkunku, Mykhailo Mudryk, Conor Gallagher and Jackson were on target in Philadelphia as Pochettino's side beat Brighton.
The Seagulls had taken the lead through Danny Welbeck after 13 minutes, before Chelsea equalised. Brighton also saw Jan Paul van Hecke sent off an hour in for a second bookable offence.
After the Blues pulled 4-1 ahead, the South Coast club pulled back late goals through a Joao Pedro penalty
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