Hiddink waxes lyrical about rare Baba breed

Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink is impressed by Baba Rahman’s progress at the club.

The 21-year-old left-back joined the 2012 European champions last summer under Jose Mourinho but has been one of the casualties of the Blues disappointing showing in the Premier League this season.

Appointed Chelsea coach following the sack of the Portuguese in December, Hiddink has steered the London-based side away from the relegation zone to a current 10th position and says the Ghanaian has been on a learning curve.

“He [Baba] is one of the guys who, when I came in, I had an impression after a few days,” Hiddink told the club’s official website.

“He was too quiet but very skillful with both feet. He’s left-footed by nature, but he can handle his right foot very well, which is unusual for left-footed players.

“This week, I played him at right-back in an exercise game because I was curious how he’ll do, and he has no problem.”

Baba has featured in 10 league games this season, but the Dutchman insists the former Augsburg man must up his game.

“To survive in the Premier League, he must make it very difficult for a coach to put him out of the team,” Hiddink added.

“He has the skill to be very dominant defensively on his area, and he’s working on that.

“He’s a very nice person and I told him to be nice off the pitch but less nice on the pitch. He’s getting the experience and I hope he can make the next step.”

Baba is expected to be in action when Chelsea take on Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.