Chelsea now watching Argentine 20 y/o ahead of 2025 window

Chelsea’s plan to buy every young talent in world football is showing no signs of slowing up, with reports now suggesting that they are tracking yet another star in the making to bolster Enzo Maresca’s ranks.

Focus on youth paying off for Chelsea

Though it looked a risky strategy at the time, Chelsea’s decision to focus almost solely on youth additions in recent summers appears to be paying dividends in the early part of the Premier League season.

A comeback win against Brighton, sparked by four first-half goals by talisman Cole Palmer, was enough to move the Blues into fourth in the table after the opening six games of the campaign.

They trail last season’s champions and runners-up by just a point, while Arne Slot’s Liverpool sit two clear of Maresca’s side. Meanwhile, they have scored the most goals in the division, and are unbeaten since their opening-day defeat to Manchester City, though whether they can sustain that form is another matter with a tough run of games ahead.

But they have achieved this all so far with the youngest squad in the division every week, with their average age of 23.4 years old a full year lower than the next-youngest side, Southampton.

This trend is unlikely to change any time soon, with the Blues already waiting on several new faces to arrive from South America who will bring the average age of the squad down further.

The major addition is Estêvão Willian, who was signed for a potential £47m including add-ons, while Kendry Paez will also arrive to bolster the frontline.

Having plundered Brazil, the Blues turned their attentions to Argentina over the summer, signing young defender Aaron Anselmino in a deal worth around £14m.

Now, they could repeat the trick to sign his compatriot in January.

Chelsea eyeing up Argentine likened to Di Maria

That comes courtesy of a report from TBR Football, which claims that Chelsea are one of several sides keeping a close eye on the performances of 20-year-old Argentine attacker Thiago Fernandez.

Currently plying his trade for Argentine top-flight side Velez Sarsfield, the youngster has caught the eye of several Premier League clubs and is out of contract at the end of 2025 as things stand.

Truly breaking into the first team this year, he has registered five goals and eight assists in South America, and has reportedly earned comparisons to Albiceleste icon Ángel Di María.

Scouts have also labelled Fernandez as “exciting” and highlighted him as one of the best players in the Argentinian league.

He has reportedly caught the eye of Manchester United, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Brighton as well as Chelsea, and is “likely” to make the move to Europe in the near future as he looks to kickstart his career, while he remains valued at just £1.5m by Transfermarkt, though his actual fee would likely be far higher.

Given Chelsea’s recent success in the South American market, he may be another gem they deem too good to pass up on.