Chelsea's Mason Mount scores brace for England U18's in win over Italy
Mason Mount showed off two of the strongest parts of his game to give the Young Lions U18 a 2-1 win over Italy. The Chelsea academy star twice broke a deadlock, scoring off a free kick and a tricky individual effort.
Mason Mount was already wearing Blue when Chelsea won their first Premier League title in 2005… and he’s only 17 years old. Mount joined Chelsea’s academy when he was six years old, and has represented the Blues up the the U21 level.
Currently on international duty with England’s U18s, Mount scored a brace and earned Man of the Match honors against Italy. Mount’s goals showed off two of the strongest aspects of his young game. Mount rifled a free kick past the Italian keeper, who was out position expecting a cross, to open the scoring in the 37th minute.
???? Two-goal Mason Mount scores superbly to secure victory over the @azzurri for our Under-18s https://t.co/2ZlHeSxKkJ
— England (@England) September 1, 2016
In the 73rd minute, Mount did his best Eden Hazard impression to put the Young Lions ahead for good. He took a pass outside the box and ran straight into the area. Confronted by three Italian defenders, he protected the ball until he created a narrow shooting lane for himself. Once he had a clear view of the net, he let loose with a low shot that glanced off a defender into the far corner.
Mason Mount has been creating highlight moments like this for years at the Academy. His deft dribbling and passing have made him particularly lethal on training ground-style set pieces. He slyly pulls defenders out of position, opening new spaces in the offensive third.
Mount stands out even among his highly-rated peers at Cobham. He has played at every level well under-age, debuting for Chelsea’s U18 squad as a 15 year old. Two weeks ago he scored in the U23’s 4-1 drubbing of Liverpool in the revamped Premier League 2.
In his first full season with the U18s last season, he scored six goals and assisted on 12 others over 23 games, ending the season with the FA Youth Cup and UEFA Youth League titles.
Mason Mount is the kind of player that makes youth football so enjoyable to watch in its own right. He’s creative, expressive and highly-talented, and has a perfect rapport with his teammates in England and Chelsea’s academy. Forget about the usual “could he be the next John Terry” conversations. Just take a few minutes and enjoy the youth game as much as players like Mason do.
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