Chelsea continue aggressive recruitment of young stars with signing of Brazilian wonderkid
Chelsea have reportedly agreed to the future signing of 16-year-old Brazilian sensation Gabriel Mec from Gremio with the deal to be completed when he turns 18.
English Premier League clubs are prohibited from signing Under-18 players from any foreign countries but Chelsea have moved to tie the youngster down with this agreement.
According to Globo Brazil, the deal was finalised on Sunday 4 August, marking another big move when it comes to young talent by the London club.
The deal could be worth as much as £20.5m to the Brazilian club with performance-related add-ons also said to be included in the agreement.
Chelsea’s plot to contract the cream of young talent to long-term deals is something that is already starting to bear fruit for Stamford Bridge with Academy graduates staffing key positions in the first team and netting the club tidy transfer fees if they depart, such as in the case of Omari Hutchinson.
The seven-year deal that Chelsea has offered Mec shows how committed they are to him as a talent and to their aforementioned strategy.
A two-year option to extend the first five-year agreement further demonstrates their belief in the attacking midfielder’s bright future.
Gremio had rebuffed Chelsea’s initial offers for the player but the Blues sent a delegation to Brazil to convince Clube de Todos to give up their prodigy.
It is likely that Gremio realised that there was a good chance that they might lose the youngster when he turned 18 anyway and this deal allows them to get a return on their investment in his development.
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Mec will join a burgeoning group of young South American talent at Chelsea, which also includes Kendry Paez from Independiente del Valle, who signed for £17 million last year, and Estevao Willian from Palmeiras, who will join when he turns 18 next summer. Investing in young, talented South American players has worked well for other European powerhouses, like Real Madrid with Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior.
Chelsea has taken a risky gamble on Mec despite his evident potential given his lack of professional experience. The club’s inconsistent previous history with young players has some supporters wondering if it makes sense to put future potential ahead of current reinforcements. These gripes are attached to broader complaints about Chelsea’s transfer business and contracting strategy with extremely long contracts the norm since Todd Boehly’s takeover.
It is clear though that Chelsea’s long-term plan is to develop these young players so they may someday be important members of their team as they pursue supremacy in Europe.