Chelsea have completed the signing of 16-year-old Ecuadorian midfielder Kendry Paez from Independiente del Valle for €20m (£17.27m). The midfielder, who only turned 16 last month, will transfer to Stamford Bridge when he becomes 18; as a result, he will probably join the Blues in the summer of 2025. Paez, who can play on the wing or in midfield, made his Independiente del Valle debut at the age of 15, making him the league’s youngest debutant and goal scorer. A 2-1 victory over Brazilian powerhouse Corinthians last month marked his first participation in the Copa Libertadores, South America’s version of the Champions League. Paez has excelled at the international level, most notably helping Ecuador to four goals in the U20 World Cup this summer.
Additionally, he performed admirably at the U17 Copa America, when he led his country, scored twice, and provided six assists. At the Next Generation Trophy, an international youth competition featuring teams from all over the world, he was also chosen as the best player the previous year. Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali are leading the Chelsea owners’ enormous spending in the transfer window since their takeover last summer, which included the signing of Kendry Paez. Over the course of the previous two transfer windows, the Blues spent more than £600 million on 19 players, yet despite this, they were only able to finish 12th in the Premier League and were unable to take home any hardware.
As Mauricio Pochettino tries to trim down the bloated and underwhelming team he inherited, the next few months are expected to be chaotic for Chelsea. Both Manchester United and Manchester City have Mateo Kovacic on their radars. Other players including Kalidou Koulibaly, Conor Gallagher, Edouard Mendy, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek have all been linked to exits.
For more football news, click here
