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Vitesse Arnhem. Chelsea’s Dutch talent factory
It has the same bronze cladding and stylish design lines with sci-fi detail like fingerprint recognition access and state-of-the-art technology in the medical and fitness suites.
The story goes that the main building was originally planned to be bigger than Chelsea’s but word came from London to make it smaller.
Chance: Vitesse coach Peter Bosz says the Dutch league are not afraid to play young players in the Eredivisie
'I don’t know if it’s true but it’s what they say,' nodded head coach Peter Bosz, sipping espresso under the gaze of “The Duke”, the club’s eagle mascot, whose image dominates one wall of the canteen.
Opened last year, the Vitesse complex cost £10million, replacing the rickety sheds previously passing for a training ground. Everyone seems to agree there’s nothing like it in Holland, not even at Ajax.
This historic provincial club is suddenly on the move, boosted by the link which has seen them dubbed 'Chelsea 2' or 'Chelsea B' and moved fans of local rivals NEC to create a banner depicting a puppet footballer in yellow-and-black stripes controlled by a shadowy figure.
Many are sure it is Roman Abramovich who pulls the strings.
Vitesse have signed seven Chelsea players on loan this season and are fourth in the Eredivisie. Title hopes have faded since the turn of the year but the runners-up go into the Champions League and they are a point from PSV in second, with five games to play.
There is no limit on loan signings in Holland but Vitesse’s technical director Mohammed Allach recoiled at the mention of Watford, who ran into double figures last season with loan signings from other clubs controlled by their owners, the Pozzo family.
Identity: Vitesse techinical director Mohammed Allach says Chelsea and his own club respect each other
'That’s too much,' said Allach. 'Then, you can consider yourself a second team. That’s not us. You have to keep your own identity. That’s what’s so beautiful in this relationship, we respect each other’s identity.'
Identity is the buzzword for Allach, Bosz and chief executive Joost de Wit as they balance three key sources of talent: the transfer market, Chelsea and the Vitesse academy, which produced Marco van Ginkel.
'From 32 players, we currently have five from Chelsea and eight from our Academy which I think means we keep our identity quite well,' said De Wit. 'We are committed to our own players but Vitesse fans don’t care where a player comes from. If you wear yellow-and-black and score like Lucas Piazon did in our derby, you are very popular.
'We like to feel we are the boss here and we are, but we respect our co-operation with Chelsea. You would be a fool not to, because it brings us so much.'
Bonds are tightening. There is daily contact, be that between Allach and Michael Emenalo or Bosz and Eddie Newton, the coach responsible for monitoring Chelsea’s army of players on loan, or De Wit and influential Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia.
'They don’t put pressure on us or ask us to do things we don’t like, not at all, I mean that,' said Bosz, who was appointed last year after a meeting in London with Emenalo and Granovskaia.
'They explained how they worked and what they expected. I tell them positions where I’m looking for players, they tell me what they can do for us and we look at whether it’s possible.
'Once we agree for a player to come to us, I have to develop him and in the end we hope they are good enough for Chelsea. They are not saying I have to play them, or I have to play this kind of way. I’m the coach and I decide. But of course we work together.'
Cees and Jan, Vitesse fans for half a century, do not resent the partnership, which allows them to enjoy watching some of Europe’s best young players in Europe in a successful team playing an exciting brand of attacking football.
They fondly recall time spent by Nemanja Matic in Arnhem before Chelsea sold him to Benfica.
'We call it the Matic tree,' chuckled Cess, pointing to a tall pine behind a goal on the training pitch. The £21million Serb has not been re-signed on account of his shooting.
Special One: Vitesse are huge admirers of Bertrand Traore but he has failed to break into the first-team
When Bertrand Traore arrived in January, Vitesse hoped the highly-rated teenager might propel them to their first Dutch title. It has not worked out that way. He has struggled to force his way into the team but Bosz purred: 'He is special. I knew from the moment I first saw him.
'I know at Chelsea they already have the Special One but this is also a special one. He’s gifted. He’s mature. He feels what is necessary. We don’t have to teach him these things.'
Player development is at the heart of this partnership struck when Merab Jordania bought Vitesse in 2010, making them the first Dutch club in foreign ownership, at about the time Chelsea were losing faith in the reserve team system in England.
The plot thickened last year when Jordania left for FC Valletta in Malta and passed control to Russian businessman Alexander Chigirinsky, an associate of Abramovich.
'In the Dutch league we are not afraid to play young players,' said Bosz. 'It is the perfect environment for their talent. The football we play is offensive and dominant. We like to press forward and if you are to play with Chelsea it will be the same, you will be dominant, in the half of the opponent.'
One day it may save Abramovich a fortune in the transfer fees but that moment is not quite upon us.
Not ready: Bosz doesn't believe left back Patrick van Aanholt is reliable enough to play for Chelsea yet
When asked if Patrick van Aanholt might solve Jose Mourinho’s search for a left-back, Bosz said: 'He’s not ready. You cannot make the mistakes for Chelsea that he is making with us. It is not possible.
'He is progressing and he is not an old player, he is 23. He is fast and has fantastic technique. Going forward he is one of the best but in defence he has to learn a lot if he wants to play for Chelsea. He must be reliable.'
Loanee: Christian Atsu signed for Chelsea from Porto in a £3.5m deal before being loaned to Vitesse
Christian Atsu, a winger signed by Chelsea from Porto for £3.5m last year has impressed after being moved by Bosz into central midfield. Piazon, playing on the left, started the season in a blaze of goals and has faded.
'When Lucas came, nobody knew him,' said Bosz 'Now coaches say: 'Piazon is important and if we stop him we kill a big part of Vitesse". They mark him close, sometimes a bit mean, the spaces are reduced and he is tired because it is his first season playing game after game.
Attention: The Dutch media love Piazon's skill and technique, particularly after he started in a blaze of goals
'Also, the media love him because he is technical and skilful. There is a lot of attention and that is new for him. It’s interesting how he handles that. The new challenge for Lucas is to perform the same. These last steps are the most difficult.'
Vitesse were 15th in 2011, seventh in 2012, fourth last year and are a point behind second placed PSV with five to play. The Champions League beckons, although De Wit insists it is not essential this year, and maybe a date with Chelsea, if UEFA are satisfied the relationship does not break their common ownership rules.
'Our owner and the owner of Chelsea are friends and that’s it,' said De Wit. 'I don’t see any problem. If we ever play in the Champions League against Chelsea, we will go fully for a win. That’s my ambition. We will do everything to beat them. They will have exactly the same approach.'
The Champions League would be another coup for the partnership: vital experience at the sharp end for the starlets from Stamford Bridge (who would all be allowed to play if drawn against Chelsea) and a revenue boost for Vitesse, much-needed after losses of more than £35m over the last two years.
They are dangerously close to the Financial Fair Play limits. Wages are more than turnover although next year’s figures will be boosted by transfer sales, including Van Ginkel’s £8m transfer to Chelsea, who pipped Ajax to his signature.
Midfield maestro: Marco van Ginkel signed for Chelsea from Vitesse last summer in an £8million switch
The partnership has advantages at many levels and other wealthy clubs will be tempted to follow.
'We are the first ones but I speak to a lot of directors and they are curious,' said De Wit. 'If you can control your identity, it is a perfect way of cooperating. My vision of the future is that it will happen more.'
Vitesse currently sit fourth in the Eredivisie table just one point behind second-placed PSV
