Chelsea bring in wonderkid two years before his transfer is official

Stuart Telford

• 15 Dec 2023 19:52 GMT
• 3 min read

Chelsea's €20 million move for Kendry Paez will only be made official on his 18th birthday, but the Ecuadorean prodigy is due in West London sooner than advertised…

Paez is both the youngest debutant and goalscorer in Ecuadorean top-flight history, and Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund had both expressed interest in the youngster before Chelsea won the race for his signature in June.

They agreed to pay Independiente del Valle - Moises Caicedo's first club - €20 million for the 16-year-old, with the understanding that he would make the move to Stamford Bridge ij the summer of 2025, upon turning 18.

But he will meet up with his future employers ahead of time, according to a report in The Telegraph.

Paez in London

"Wonderkid Kendry Paez will train with Chelsea’s first team squad next week in the first of a series of settling-in visits to England planned by the Premier League club," writes Matt Law.

"… Paez will visit England two or three times to start his integration process, designed at making the midfielder’s full-time move as smooth as possible.

"Independiente have given the green light for Paez to spend time at Chelsea next week, when he will train with the first team, meet head coach Mauricio Pochettino and the squad, and talk to other staff members."

Paez certainly fits with Todd Boehly's 'Vision 2030' for the club - that is, the acquisition of players who will be at their peak by the end of the decade - while his phenomenal dribbling and improving end-product would perhaps be of use sooner.

Mauricio Pochettino's side currently find themselves 12th in the Premier League table with just five from a possible 16 wins, despite spending more than €400m on their squad last summer.