Graduating through Charlton Athletic’s youth system as a promising youngster, Chris Solly looked destined to be a vital first-teamer for the Addicks even as a teenager.
Indeed, he was a regular during most of his long spell at The Valley, fully establishing himself as one of the first names on the teamsheet during the 2011/12 season when he made 44 Championship appearances, following that up with 45 more during the following season.
Even when the Addicks were relegated to League One during the latter stages of the 2015/16 campaign, the full-back remained loyal to the cause in the English capital.
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Following their relegation to the third tier though, Solly didn’t make as many appearances as he would have wanted in a Charlton shirt but stayed with the club until the summer of 2020.
Things did end on a sour note for the 31-year-old though, with then-manager Lee Bowyer claiming in June that year that Solly and his two teammates Lyle Taylor and David Davis were refusing to play for the club.
That story emerged before Championship action resumed following a Covid-19 lockdown and sure enough, the full-back didn’t play for the club again with his contract expiring that summer.
He was released by the club in July 2020 and spent a period of time out of football, with the 31-year-old revealing in an interview with the South London Press that he had interest from abroad, though those potential opportunities didn’t suit him.
However, at the time of that interview in December 2020, he was still open to playing away from the UK but was training with non-league outfit Ebbsfleet United at the time.
And sure enough, he put pen to paper on a deal during the same month, enjoying a reasonably successful time with the club thus far with the experienced defender also taking on a coaching role.
He’s still playing at this stage though, making 40 league appearances last term but seeing his side miss out on promotion to the fifth tier by the smallest of margins as they lost 3-2 against Dorking Wanderers.
Appearing eight times already this season, Solly will be hoping to use his experience to guide his current side to promotion, with the Kent-based outfit winning 24 points from a possible 24 during 2022/23 thus far.
