Young midfield talent compared to Patrick Vieira will sign for Chelsea
By Evan Curnew
Chelsea have been extremely busy this summer transfer window as they continue to rebuild their squad for Mauricio Pochettino. While the headlines will be dominated by their pursuit of Brighton’s Moises Caicedo, Chelsea looks to have completed another midfield signing. Rennes’ Lesley Ugochukwu is reportedly joining Chelsea after a verbal agreement between the clubs has been reached, per Fabrizio Romano.
Chelsea to sign Lesley Ugochukwu – compared to Patrick Vieira
Further to Fabrizio Romano’s reporting, there has already been an agreement on personal terms between Chelsea and Ugochukwu. The reported fee for the French midfielder is £23m. The deal is advanced, with Ugochukwu set to not feature in Rennes’ pre-season friendly against West Ham United.
For now, it is undecided whether or not Ugochukwu will join Chelsea’s newest satellite club, Strasbourg, on loan for the season. BlueCo, owned by Todd Boehly, took over Strasbourg last month, and the likes of Angelo Gabriel and Andrey Santos have been linked to potentially join the French side on loan for the season.
Lesley Ugochukwu, at just 19 years old, has already been hailed compared to Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira. Ugochukwu himself even says Vieira is a player he looked up to as a kid.
"“When I was small, I would watch the skills of players like Pogba and Vieira on YouTube,” he says. “They inspired me a lot because of the way they play.” [Source]"
At 6’2″, Lesley Ugochukwu is seen as a physical midfielder who can shrug off imposing players with ease. Lesley was born and raised in the city of Rennes and came up through Rennes’ academy, joining the club when he was just eight years old.
The talented youngster is not a finished product, so there’s a good chance he does go out on loan. In the midst of haggling over a gargantuan price for Moises Caicedo, Chelsea quietly has completed smart business for an emerging young midfielder.