CONOR CLIFFORD has the potential to make a breakthrough at Chelsea, according to former Republic of Ireland under-21 assistant manager Paul Clement, now reserve team coach at Stamford Bridge.

Midfielder Clifford is the only Irish youngster at Chelsea and played his first full game for their reserves in Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with St Patrick’s Athletic at Richmond Park.

The 17-year-old Dubliner, who captained Ireland at last May’s Uefa Under-17 Championship finals in Turkey, is making good progress and Clement says he has the right attributes to do well in the game.

“Conor is doing okay,” said Clement. “He’s a very good trainer and works really hard every day. He plays most of his games at youth level and is in the team pretty much every week and he’s making steady progress.”

Making the first team grade at a top club like Chelsea, who can spend tens of millions to bring in ready made superstars, is an awesome task.

“It’s difficult to say, but everyone has a chance as they’re in the system,” said Clement, who worked under Don Givens for three years until pressure of work at Chelsea forced him to given up the FAI post last September.

“But you never know where they might end up as there’s a lot of hurdles along the way. But they’re in the right place to learn.”

Clifford’s eagerness and desire to progress impress Clement.

“Conor has a good range of passing. He runs hard and his work ethic is very good,” added Clement. “He has a good attitude to learn and improve. That’s very important in a young player. They can have all the talent they want, but if they don’t have the attitude to want to get better they’ll go nowhere. He’s definitely got that and he’s good to work with day to day.”

Clement accepts that young players may progress more quickly at smaller clubs, but argues they have the best of both worlds at a club like Chelsea.

“There are two ways you can look at it,” explains Clement. “You can go to the best and give it your best shot, and if you don’t make it maybe you can find your level afterwards. Or you do it the other way.

“I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way of doing it. What we can offer at our club is excellent facilities, training, give the players every chance and really help them to try and achieve their potential.”

As for Clifford himself, he simply delights in working with some of the world’s top professionals.

“It’s going well. I’m doing all right over there and I love it really,” said Clifford, who hails from Palmerstown in west Dublin.

“I’ve been in with the reserves training a lot, but this was my first time going away with them training. Hopefully, I’ll stay with them now and get a game with them on a regular basis.”

The club encourage interaction between trainees and star players. “We see them every day. We are in the same building and we eat lunch with each other.

“At the start of the season we had meetings with the first-team players in our positions. They were just telling us what to practice on and what skills we need to be a midfielder. Ballack was in talking with us and then Essien.”

Clifford accepts it was a gamble to go to Chelsea.

“I could have gone somewhere lower where I would have had a better chance of getting in, but the best facilities in the world are at Chelsea.

“I’m playing with the best players in Europe and from around the world and that’s going to make me better.

“I’m getting the best of coaching. And if it doesn’t work out at Chelsea I can go somewhere else hopefully and get in there.

“My goal for this season would be to stay in the reserves and keep pushing on, let the first-team manager see what I can do. You never know, if I get a chance I just have to take it.”