Chelsea will have a surprise visitor when they welcome West Ham to Stamford Bridge for their first Premier League game of the season tonight.
Former Blues youth player Gokhan Tore has been included in the squad for the London derby in what would be his first game at the Bridge in five years.
Paul Pogba returned to the Premier League four years after leaving but there was another former youth who returned to the top-flight this summer in Tore.
The 24-year-old joined West Ham on a one-year loan deal on a £2.5 million fee and has a £10 million buyout clause option but he is no stranger to the Premier League.
The explosive winger was signed to the Blues youth academy in 2009 by Frank Arnesen – former head of talent scout for Chelsea – aged just 17.
Arneson brought Tore with him when he moved to HSV Hamburg however, a series of injuries saw the Turkish international struggle to settle in.
Tore later joined Rubin Kazan where things did not work out after which he was loaned out to Besiktas before signing for the club on a £4 million transfer in 2014.
It was at Besiktas that Tore was taken under the wing of current Hammers boss Slaven Bilic and he established himself as one of the brightest talents in Turkish football.
The Turkish international scored a career high eight goals and provided 11 assists in Bilic’s final season in charge including impressive performances against Tottenham and Liverpool in the Europa League.
Tore has now been reunited with Bilic and is on course for a reunion with his former club Chelsea in what should make a memorable debut.
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