Chelsea have completed the signing of Independiente youngster Kendry Páez, although he cannot join until he is 18-years-old.
That’s according to journalist Gustavo Villacreses, who says the 15-year-old midfielder ‘has signed’ for the Blues.
Páez was linked with a move to Chelsea back in February, with a report explaining that they had made a surprise bid of around €15m for him.
There has been little mention of his name since then but reports in England had made it clear that they were closing in on his signature.
Villacreses, a journalist for Área Deportiva FM, now reports they’ve got that deal over the line and he will be moving to Stamford Bridge in future.
He reports that the transfer is worth ‘twice’ what it cost to take Piero Hincapié from Argentina to Bayer Leverkusen in August 2021. That deal was valued at €6.35m, which would have Chelsea’s deal for Páez at around €12.5m.
The journalist also reports that Independiente ‘keeps a percentage’ of the player in case of a future transfer, to ensure they profit down the line as well.
Páez can’t join Chelsea until he’s 18, so his transfer will have to wait for a while yet, but it seems the Blues have moved quickly to secure his signature as they continue to plan for the future.
