Lesley Ugochukwu, a French midfielder, is about to be acquired by Chelsea from Rennes for $23.2 million (27 million euros).
Ugochukwu, 19, has played 47 times for Rennes in Ligue 1 and once in the Europa League.
Although he has not yet played for France at the senior level, he has represented his country at the under-17, under-18, and under-19 levels.
Mauricio Pochettino, manager of Chelsea, has stated that the Blues need to strengthen their midfield.
Ugocukwu, though, might be moved back to Ligue 1 team Strasbourg right away if a transaction is finalized. The Blues’ ownership group bought a majority stake in the Alsace team in June.
Chelsea has a plan to add young players with the potential to become future stars of the game while also trimming down their bloated team after spending £600 million over the previous two transfer windows.
This summer, the club lost players like Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic, and Mason Mount to moves to Arsenal, Manchester City, and Manchester United, respectively. Other players like N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly, and Edouard Mendy transferred to the Saudi Pro League.
Both Christian Pulisic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek moved to Italian powerhouse AC Milan.
While West Ham made a £40 million offer for Conor Gallagher, the Blues are apparently trying to sign Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo but have had several offers rejected.
In addition to Brazilian teenager Angelo Gabriel, Chelsea has already recruited forwards Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson to their squad.