Chelsea sign Aston Villa star Omari Kellyman
According to the Telegraph, (subscription required), Chelsea have agreed to pay £19 million to Aston Villa to sign highly-rated star Omari Kellyman, while Ian Maatsen completed his move to Villa after finishing his medical.
The Blues have had an interest in signing Kellyman since January after learning about him during the winter transfer window. The 18-year-old was signed by Villa from Derby County and played for the Midlands junior team becoming a highly-rated talent.
The attacking midfielder will ink a six-year contract with the option of a further 12 months after he was initially valued at £20 million by the Midlands. However, the Blues plan to take the youngster to pre-season and then loan him for more game time as the club already has enough attacking midfielders.
The West Londoners continue to show interest in signing John Duran, despite the fact that the fact that there haven’t been any talks regarding the striker’s signing. Duran is open to joining the Blues, but there hasn’t been any movement to sign the striker.
The Blues once again found another transfer loophole after signing Kellyman. After Villa agreed to sign Maatsen and sent their own academy player to the Blues. This tactic is described as an “illiquid market” clubs had to create liquidity by finding agreements for players to move in opposite directions in separate transfers.
The 18-year-old made two appearances in the Premier League last season, while playing 11 games in the second-tier division, scoring seven goals. He can operate as an attacking midfielder and can also be a backup striker to Nicolas Jackson. He likes to operate out wide, which means the club could end their pursuit of signing Duran.
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However, given Chelsea’s plans to loan Kellyman, we don’t know exactly what will happen. The 18-year-old could also stay, but it will be interesting to see during pre-season if it impresses Enzo Maresca. He has high potential and can make an impact during the West Londoners tour to USA which could propel the Blues to keep him at the club.