Ryan Bertrand: Chelsea Signs Left-Back to 5-Year Contract

Although the summer transfer window may have closed, the boys of Stamford Bridge are still signing away.

According to Chelsea's official website, ChelseaFC.com, the club confirmed that they have signed 23-year-old Ryan Bertrand to a new five-year contract, locking up the left-back until 2017:

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"Ryan Bertrand has committed his future to Chelsea today [Wednesday] as he signed a five-year contract. As understudy to Ashley Cole last season, he played 15 games although it was directly in front of Cole on the pitch in Munich that the last and most significant of those appearances was made."

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Bertrand has seemingly done more to impress new manager Roberto Di Matteo than any other player—making his debut in the Champions League in the final against Bayern Munich.

The young playmaker is, for all intents and purposes, Ashley Cole's replacement in the future. However, it'll be interesting to see how Bertrand transforms the left-back position for Chelsea and the England international team.

Bertrand fits more of the attacking role, able to come up and down the left flank with a little more speed and athleticism than Cole. The 31-year-old Cole has played 250 matches for the Blues but scored just six times and assisted on 24 others.

Compare that with Bertrand, who has just 19 appearances at Stamford Bridge and already scored once and assisted on three others.

In the offensive department, it seems that Bertrand is a little more gifted, but what do you think? Is Bertrand the right player to replace Cole at Chelsea and the England national team? Or is the position more suited for someone else?