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Chelsea have a verbal agreement in place to sign Ecuadorean teenager Kendry Paez from Independiente delle Valle.
He is still only 15, so legally cannot join the Blues until he has reached his 18th birthday.
However, that has not stopped them making a move for him in a deal that could be worth up to £17.5 million, once performance bonuses and other add-ons are factored into the deal, and he puts pen to paper.
Paez caught the eye after being named Player of the Tournament at the 2022 Next Generation tournament in Austria, and was wanted by a host of clubs, including Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund.
Increasingly clubs in Europe want to move for South American talent like Paez early, so that they have time to teach them the right habits and behaviours that will help them succeed at a big club.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.