Kakuta finally got the chance to showcase his skills against Wolves this afternoon

Over the last few months Gael Kakuta has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

The precocious 18-year-old was banned for four months by Fifa in September as a result of his move to West London in 2007 from French side Lens.

It was the first time many people had heard of him. But for keen followers of Chelsea the buzz surrounding the Frenchman has been apparent and burgeoning long before Fifa’s Dispute Resolution Chamber sanctioned him. And it seemed as if that ban would delay his inevitable breakthrough into the Chelsea first team.

That was until the Court of Arbitration for Sport suspended the ban, pending a final decision on the case.

This turn of events, combined with the Blues’ injury problems – the likes of Michael Ballack, Deco, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard are all currently out of action – to present Kakuta with his big chance against Wolves at Stamford Bridge this afternoon.

And he grabbed it with both hands.

Those massed inside the stadium gave the youngster a thunderous reception as he took to the pitch, and he soon showed them what he could do.

His first action was to leave his defender for dead with a lightning quick turn and shot that had fans up off their seats.

Kakuta proceeded to display all of the attributes you would want in a winger – an eye for goal as well as a pass, the ability to deliver a telling cross and pace in abundance.

It was reminiscent of Arjen Robben’s debut for Chelsea against Blackburn in 2004, and some will be tempted to compare the two.

The cameo in Chelsea’s 4-0 win will undoubtedly leave Carlo Ancelotti beaming with delight. The Italian was gushing with his praise for him in the build up to today’s game.

“At that age I have never seen a player with his talent,” said Ancelotti.

“Technically he is fantastic. He is a No10, like Joe Cole or Deco. Physically he is not yet strong enough to be a first-team regular but technically he is certainly ready to come on [as a substitute].

Carlo Ancelotti wil have to manage the precocious youngster carefully

“He can be a big player for Chelsea with his quality, and his character is very good too.”

That is heady praise indeed, and it will increase the pressure on the youngster’s shoulders.

After today’s performance people will sit up and take note. The question is, will he kick on from here and make this the start of something special?

Ancelotti will have to ensure he manages Kakuta carefully. Plenty of youngsters have shown early promise before fading away into obscurity. For a case in point Ancelotti doesn’t have to look very far.

Scott Sinclair had many Blues fans purring with his displays for their youth and reserve sides not so long ago but he failed to make the step up and is currently out on loan yet again.

If Ancelotti gets it right with Kakuta, however, he could have quite a player on his hands.

The penalty handed down yesterday by the organisation’s Dispute Resolution Chamber isn’t completely unprecedented – Roma were banned from signing players during the January 2006 transfer window as a result of their pursuit of Auxerre’s Philippe Mexes – but there is no doubt the Blues are the most high profile victims to fall foul of Fifa’s attempt to stamp out club’s questionable practices in poaching young talent.

As I digested the news yesterday afternoon, my overriding emotion was not, as you might think, anger. In all honesty I agree with Fifa’s decision. Something should be done to stop big clubs taking young talent from abroad with seemingly little disregard for the rules.

However, my support will waver if this isn’t followed up with further action to combat a problem that is endemic in football – and not just with youth players.

Chelsea may be more guilty than most clubs when it comes to breaking the rules, but to pretend that they are the only club which has tapped up players is despairingly naive.

Arsenal have faced questions regarding their pursuits of Cesc Fabregas and Mathieu Flamini and also their links to the Ivorian side Beveren. Tottenham recently faced criticism for the manner in which they signed Peter Crouch and John Bostock.

Allegations surrounding the transfers of Owen Hargreaves, Dimitar Berbatov and Federico Macheda to Manchester United have been made in the last three years. The Premier League champions could very well be the next to feel the wrath in Fifa’s crackdown.

The Red Devils are in hot water over their conduct in securing Paul Pogba from Le Harve. According to a number of newspapers this morning, the French side intend to take their case to Fifa, seeking a similar punishment to the one handed down to Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

Fifa should also be mindful of extending their remit to punishing clubs from other countries as well.

That is unless they want to give further credence to the idea of there being some sort of anti-English conspiracy after Arsenal’s Eduardo was banned for two matches in a bid to combat another endemic problem in modern football – diving.

I certainly won’t be holding my breath. Meanwhile, Carlo Ancelotti will be hoping Chelsea’s latest indiscretion won’t damage his chances winning either the Premier League or the Holy Grail – the Champions League.

Ligue 1 side Lens took their case to Fifa after Gael Kakuta moved to West London in 2007.

Fifa’s Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) has found that the club induced Kakuta to breach his contract with Lens.

The player has been fined 780,000 euros and banned from playing for four months. A statement on Fifa’s website stated:

“Chelsea are banned from registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the two next entire and consecutive registration periods following the notification of the present decision.”

The Blues will also have to pay Lens 130,000 euros in compensation.

Kakuta was voted scholar of the year by Chelsea’s Academy staff in 2008 and ended that season as the youth team’s top scorer.

Chelsea has yet to comment on the ban.