Chelsea have a youngster on their books that’s wanted by nearly half of Europe right now.
The latest transfer speculation has shared the name of a developing Blues talent who’s tipped for a huge future.
In fairness, Chelsea’s academy at Cobham has been helping to develop young stars for several decades now. They can be proud of helping to bring through players such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Reece James and Levi Colwill in recent times.
So, who’ll be the next academy graduate to burst through the ranks?
Chelsea youngster is a popular target
According to Miguel Delaney’s newsletter, Chelsea prospect Josh Acheampong is earning a lot of recognition.
It is understood that 18-year-old defender is wanted by nearly half of clubs in Europe due to his potential and emergence for the Blues at youth level.
The report claims that Tottenham and Newcastle United are among those to consider a move for the teenage right-back, but he’s well known across the continent.
Apparently, Acheampong is deemed as ‘one of the brightest young English prospects’.
Chelsea may need to sell some players in the summer to avoid breaking Profit and Sustainability Rules, so someone like Acheampong would represent pure profit on the balance sheet because he’s a youth player.
Who is Josh Acheampong?
For those who don’t see much academy football, Acheampong is an exciting full-back that’s been playing for a mixture of Chelsea’s Under-18s side and the club’s Under-21s team this season.
The English defender joined Chelsea in their development centre programme as an Under-8. He mainly plays as a right-back nowadays, but he can play centre-half or even higher up the pitch.
These reports about potential interest come just days after he made his first-team debut. He came off the bench for a late cameo and a maiden senior appearance in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Tottenham in the Premier League on 2 May.
With Reece James and Malo Gusto the first-team right-backs at Stamford Bridge, Acheampong immediate path into the main group does look tough.
The fans won’t want to see the club’s best youngsters, especially from the academy, sold for financal gains without getting a fair chance to develop.