It has been a challenging season so far for young Chelsea goalkeeper Emily Orman.
The 20-year-old has had to wait patiently on the sidelines as the Chelsea goalkeeping duties have been shared between experienced keepers Ann-Katrin Berger and Zećira Mušović.
Orman has plenty of talent and her time at Kingsmeadow could come in the future but with just six unused substitute appearances so far this season, the player needs game time to develop further.
The young keeper reaped the rewards of a loan move away from Kingsmeadow last season. Orman excelled during a season-long loan stay at Barclays Women’s Championship club Crystal Palace. She made 20 appearances for The Eagles as they recorded their highest-ever league finish of fourth position while she collected the Fans’ Player of the Season award in the process.
Despite not being in a position to claim the Chelsea goalkeeping jersey, Orman is capable of performing to a high level week in, week out and it would be no surprise to see the player sent out on loan again to allow her to gain further experience.
If Chelsea manager Emma Hayes opts to make Orman available for loan this month, any deal would be likely to include an emergency recall to cover injuries unless The Blues bring in another goalkeeper themselves. There is also a potential question regarding home grown minimum criteria in the Chelsea squad with Beth England set to move on, bringing the number of home grown players in the squad down to eight.
If a loan move is an option, where could Orman go? This is the big question as there would be no benefit in sending the player out to be a number two elsewhere. Orman would have to go to a club where she will immediately claim the first-choice goalkeeping spot and get a string of games under her belt.