Chelsea have confirmed they have come to an agreement for the signing of Kendry Paez from Independiente del Valle. The 16-year-old will join the Blues after his 18th birthday.
The youngster has most recently participated in the under-20 World Cup with Ecuador. He made quite the impression after recording a goal and three assists in four appearances.
Paez's talents have lauded having being regaded as the top talent of the the 2022 Next Generation Trophy, a youth tournament in Austria and starred for Ecuador at the under-17 Copa America where he captained his nation and racked up two goals and six assists.
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In 2019, according to El Universo, the midfielder scored 39 goals in 106 games from 2018 and 2022 and has been a regular throughout del Valle's youth teams. The midfielder has featured six times for Independiente del Valle in 2023, including in the Copa de Libertadores.
Paez is the latest of a number of young talents targeted by the Blues as they look to capture stars early. Last summer saw Chelsea sign Gabriel Slonina, Carney Chukwuemeka and Cesare Casadei before they landed Andrey Santos in January. The latter has been unable to join up with the Blues due to work permit issues that saw him return on loan to Vasco da Gama.
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