Chelsea
have agreed a deal to sign Kendry Paez from Ecuadorian club Independiente
del Valle for €20m (£17.27m).
The midfielder, who turned 16 last month, will move to Stamford Bridge after
his 18th birthday - meaning he will likely join the Blues in the summer of
2025.
Paez - who can play in midfield or on the wing - made his debut for
Independiente del Valle at the age of 15 and is the youngest debutant and
goalscorer in the Ecuadorian top flight.
He also made his first appearance in the Copa Libertadores - South America's
equivalent of the Champions League - in a 2-1 win over Brazilian giants
Corinthians last month.
Paez has shone at international level, most recently scoring one goal and
assisting three more for Ecuador at this summer's U20 World Cup.
He also starred at the U17 Copa America, scoring two and assisting six while
captaining his country, while he was also named as the top talent at the
Next Generation Trophy - a youth tournament featuring clubs from around the
globe - last year.
Paez's signing continues Chelsea's owners' - led by Todd Boehly and Behdad
Eghbali - huge spending in the transfer window since their takeover last
summer.
The Blues signed 19 players at a cost of more than £600m across the previous
two transfer windows, yet still slumped to a 12th-placed finish in the
Premier League, while they also failed to lift a trophy last season.
Chelsea are expected to have another busy window ahead of them over the next
few months as Mauricio Pochettino looks to trim down the bloated and
underperforming squad that he has inherited.
Manchester United want to sign Mason Mount and Manchester City are keen on
Mateo Kovacic, while a number of other players - including Ruben
Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher, Edouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly - have
all been linked with exits.
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