A lot was made of Chelsea’s infamous bomb squad, which was composed of the likes of Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi.
Both players recently left the club after being banished from the first team, with Sterling now at Feyenoord. As for Disasi, he joined Chelsea’s London rivals West Ham United on loan.
Disasi did get to train with the first team on the odd occasion, but he was mainly with the Under-21s and never made a senior appearance for the Blues this season.
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The central defender has now opened up on that difficult period in his career.
Joao Pedro and Axel Disasi of Chelsea during a training session
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Axel Disasi describes Chelsea exile as ‘crazy’
Disasi went from a £39m signing starting regularly to a player who could not even make the bench.
It is no wonder that Disasi has described the whole situation as “crazy”, though he has also shared that his family helped him to get through it.
Speaking on West Ham’s Ironcast podcast, the 27-year-old said: “In Chelsea the time was a little bit crazy but my background helped me to get through. I stayed sharp, I was working hard and always made sure that my head stayed in the right way.
“My family helped me a lot going through this. During this period I saw that my background helped me a lot.”
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His last Chelsea appearance came in January 2025
Had Disasi remained at Stamford Bridge, he would have been forced to watch another centre-back get selected over him.
Chelsea recalled Mamadou Sarr from his loan at Strasbourg during the winter transfer window, and the Senegal international is already impressing.
Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer was one individual to praise Sarr following his performance against Hull City in the FA Cup. Like Disasi, he also arrived from Ligue 1 but will be hoping that his Chelsea career lasts much longer than the Frenchman’s.
Axel Disasi of West Ham during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United
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How Axel Disasi is faring at West Ham so far
Disasi will be pleased with how his West Ham career has started. He helped the Hammers to beat Burnley 2-0 on his debut and was given a match rating of 7.5 by Sofascore.
The France international then followed that up with another solid display against Manchester United, making a total of eight defensive actions in a 1-1 draw.
If West Ham manage to avoid the drop, it would not be a surprise if they signed him permanently. Disasi has always been a fairly good centre-half and is showing that at the London Stadium.
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