When Jose Mourinho embarked on his first pre-season tour after returning as Chelsea manager in the summer of 2013, with a fresh surge of optimism at the club and brave plans for the future, there was one issue that nagged away at his patience every time it was raised.

It was the notion that when it came to young players, Mourinho was simply not interested in giving them their chance – a policy that conflicted with the stated intent of a club who had poured more resources than any other into their academy over the previous eight years. What was the point of having the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Ryan Bertrand, Bertrand Traoré, Nathaniel Chalobah and Marco van Ginkel – all on that particular tour – if he was never going to use them?