This article is part of Football League World's 'The Verdict' series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

We brought you the exclusive that Harry Darling is on the radar of a trio of Premier League clubs from the 2021/22 campaign and Chelsea could be looking to begin their defensive rebuild with the 22-year-old.

Darling was one of the classiest ball playing defenders in League One last season for Milton Keynes Dons, and can contribute to attacks heavily with his ball carrying, wide range of passing and intelligence in possession.

The Dons narrowly missing out on automatic promotion from the third tier has meant that it is going to be difficult to hold onto Darling this summer.

We gathered the thoughts of a selection of FLW writers to see if they believe that Darling would be a smart addition for Chelsea...

Carla Devine

Darling has shown plenty of promise as a player and had a brilliant season in League One with MK Dons this season.

In 41 league appearances for the club he scored seven goals and provided an assist which is particularly impressive for a defender.

At 22-years-old, there’s still plenty to come from the defender and Darling was unlucky not to be part of a side that went up this season but it’s clear he is deserving of a step up.

However, I would argue this isn’t the right move for him.

It’s highly unlikely he would go into this Chelsea team and get regular first team football.

In fact, he’d more be looking at cup games for first team opportunities.

Therefore, you can’t help but feel as though his experience in games will dry up quickly which in itself could halt his progression.

His talent is clear and you can imagine other clubs would be interested in gaining his services too.

I feel as though it would make more sense to take the step up to the Championship and play regularly and then look at another step up after that or he could risk wasting his potential sitting on a bench.

Declan Harte

The defender excelled for MK Dons last season, but this would be a huge step up for him in his career.

Joining Chelsea would almost certainly guarantee going back out on loan which can be hit and miss as far as the Blues are concerned.

Darling is certainly ready to move up the English football pyramid, with a lower level Premier League club even a likely destination that could receive decent playing time.

However a move to Thomas Tuchel’s side could be coming a bit too soon for the 22-year old.

He should continue to develop his game to a higher level before joining one of the bigger clubs in the country.

 

 

Josh Cole

Although Chelsea will need to bolster their options in the heart of defence this summer following Antonio Rudiger's departure, they ought to avoid taking a risk on Darling.

Darling managed to produce a host of impressive performances in League One for MK Dons last season as he averaged a WhoScored match rating of 6.87 at this level.

Yet despite the fact that he has shown a great deal of promise at this level, he may not be ready to make the step up to the top-flight at this stage of his career.

Keeping this in mind, Chelsea may find it beneficial to look elsewhere for a new defender unless Darling is being viewed as a long-term investment.