Chelsea rival Man Utd and Liverpool for England U18 wonderkid

Tom Weber

Updated: 24 May 2024 07:03 CDT
4 min read

Chelsea are among a host of clubs interested in Stoke City youngster Souleymane Sidibe, according to a report.

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The son of former Potters player Mamady Sidibe, Souleymane has been attracting big-name attention for years despite only being 17. The England youth international has been highly rated since at least age 14 and the country's elite has been keeping a close eye on his development.

The teenager made his senior debut for Stoke last August aged 16 and would go on to make seven more appearances for the first team over the course of the 2023/24 season. Still mostly active in Stoke's Premier League 2 side, Sidibe is nevertheless an increasingly intriguing prospect.

The central midfielder played 55 minutes for England's U18s on Wednesday as the Three Lions defeated Northern Ireland 4-2 and a fresh report has added more names to the youngster's long list of suitors.

16-year-old Souleymane Sidibe made his debut for the u21’s side tonight Vs Newcastle United

He is the son of former Stoke player Mama Sidibe. Following in his fathers footsteps 🙌 #SCFC pic.twitter.com/xgss2gO2cQ
— Potterslive (@potterslive_) February 24, 2023

Chelsea interested

Previously linked with the likes of Man Utd, Man City and Liverpool, Footmercato now reports that Chelsea are also keen on Sidibe. Additionally, clubs like Brighton, Juventus, Monaco and Rangers are credited with an interest in the 17-year-old.

The Paris-born midfielder can play as an eight and a six, which makes him attractive. Sidibe is under contract at Stoke until next summer, but given his suitors, it seems unlikely that he will see out his deal.

Signing Sidibe would be firmly in line with Chelsea's transfer policy under the Todd Boehly-Clearlake regime, which has seen Chelsea focus most of their attention on the wonderkid market. The acquisition of Estevao from Palmeiras serves as an ideal recent example of this.

Whether they actually need the teenager is a different question, of course. Chelsea signed Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Lesley Ugochukwu - all of whom are in their early 20s and play in his position - for a combined €232 million last summer.