Chelsea set for wonderkid transfer – David Ornstein

Suraj Radia

15 Aug 2024 22:00 BST
3 min read

Chelsea finally look set to be resolving the future of some members of their bloated squad after they entering advanced negotiations with another Premier League side for one of their young stars.

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The Blues are desperately looking to trim down their first team before the end of the month, with more than 40 first team players in Enzo Maresca’s squad.

Part of Chelsea’s issue has been the limit to the number of foreign loans available to them, with only six players under the age of 21 allowed to be sent abroad.

But that situation has been eased by one of their players, with The Athletic’s David Ornstein reporting that Lesley Ugochukwu is set to join Southampton for the upcoming season.

According to Ornstein, the 20-year-old is seen as a major part of Chelsea’s long-term plans, with the club considering him to have similar attributes to Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni.

The loan for Ugochukwu will not include a buy option, despite ‘multiple enquiries’, but Chelsea were keen to loan the midfielder to a Premier League side like Southampton due to their philosophy and style of play under manager Russell Martin.

© IMAGO - Lesley Ugochukwu is set to leave Chelsea on loan.

Chelsea looking to sell another wonderkid

Ugochukwu joined Chelsea last summer for €27 million but the Frenchman played less than 300 minutes of Premier League football before suffering a season-ending injury in December.

The ex-Rennes youngster was recalled from France’s under-23 squad at the Olympics, instead being used regularly in pre-season and scoring in a friendly against Inter last week.

But despite being impressed by his contributions this summer, a Premier League loan where Ugochukwu could get regular first team football was prioritised.

The move allows Chelsea to get experience for one of their youngsters without using a valuable foreign loan spot, having already used two spots sending Caleb Wiley and Andrey Santos to affiliate club Strasbourg.

With Chelsea only allowed to loan one more player to Strasbourg, doubts remain over the future of Angelo Gabriel, who spent last season with the Ligue 1 side.

A loan approach from Besiktas has been turned down, with Chelsea looking to permanently sell Angelo despite only signing him last summer for €15m.

That position may soften if no acceptable permanent offers are received but the right winger’s path to first team has been further blocked by the €60m signing of Pedro Neto.