One Chelsea loanee has now stated that he recieved a message from an experienced member of the first team after making his first appearance away from Stamford Bridge.
He told The Athletic that Raheem Sterling reached out to him to congratulate him after he took part in what was a challenging first match.
Chelsea ensured a number of players left the club on loan in January, with the idea being for them to benefit fromfirst team football on a more regular basis.
One player who had been named in the matchday squad for the majority of the first half of the season was Alex Matos, with him even being handed his Chelsea debut by Mauricio Pochettino.
Alex Matos starring on loan
His rapid rise to the first team only saw him feature a handful of times for the academy, and clearly made an impression on a number of his teammates.
After going on loan to Championship side Huddersfield in January, his first opponent just so happened to be treble winners Manchester City in the FA Cup, a game the Premier League side comfortbaly won.
Matos more than held his own though, and said that after the game Sterling was quick to get in touch with him to praise him.
Raheem Sterling messaged Alex Matos after debut
He said: “I had messages from some of the players at Chelsea. Obviously some were from young guys like myself — Alfie Gilchrist, Leo Castledine — but I had messages encouraging me from senior players as well. One was from Raheem Sterling. He must have been watching. It always feels good to get that kind of acknowledgement from someone like him.”
It has frequently been mentioned this season just how key a role Sterling has played in the development of some of the many youngsters at the club.
Another promising talent, Dujuan Richards, has mentioned in the past just how good the England international has been for his development already, with him already making a statement as part of the academy at Cobham.