Ethan
Ampadu has signed a five-year contract extension at Chelsea, keeping him at
Stamford Bridge until 2023.
The 18-year-old Wales international is yet to feature under new head coach
Maurizio Sarri, but made seven appearances under his predecessor Antonio
Conte last term.
Speaking to Chelsea's official club website, he said: "I'm really proud and
happy. I'm looking forward to the next five years and all I have got to do
now is continue to work hard, and hopefully good things will happen."
Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia added: "Ethan has shown great potential
and unbelievable maturity since arriving at Chelsea a year ago.
"In this short time he convinced a lot of people with his exceptional
quality and mentality and we look forward to watching him develop into a key
player for the club over the coming years."
Asked last week what Ampadu has to do to break into the Chelsea starting XI,
Sarri said: "In this first period, for me it was very important not to
change especially the defensive line.
"But I hope in the future to be able to give space to everyone, even the
defenders. In the first period, as you know, it's very difficult to change
the defensive line."
Cardiff boss Neil Warnock said, ahead of Saturday's 4-1 defeat at Stamford
Bridge, that he would be keen to take Ampadu on loan, saying he "doesn't
look out of place" at the top level.
Ampadu announced himself on the international stage during his competitive
Wales debut - a man-of-the-match display in a 4-1 victory over Republic of
Ireland - leading to calls for him to make the Blues first team.
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