Ornstein reveals Chelsea are ‘close to an agreement’ for £19m Aston Villa starlet
Chelsea are closing in on an agreement for Aston Villa youngster Omari Kellyman, according to The Athletic journalist David Ornstein.
The Blues have spent over £1billion since a Todd Boehly-led consortium took over the west London club in May 2022 and they show no signs of halting their financial outlay.
Chelsea have been one of the most active clubs so far with confirmed interest in Michael Olise, Samuel Omorodion, Jhon Duran, Aaron Anselmino and others.
And now Ornstein has arrived with news that Chelsea are now ‘close to an agreement’ with Aston Villa for their young forward Kellyman.
It is understood that a ‘deal is expected to be struck for around £19million’ but that ‘finer details still need to be finalised between the two clubs and player and Kellyman will need to undergo a medical and agree personal terms before a deal can be completed’.
The 19-year-old has so far only played six times for Aston Villa and made two Premier League substitute appearances, playing against Manchester City and Crystal Palace.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has brought an update on other players who Chelsea are interested in with the Blues “not giving up” on Atletico Madrid’s Omorodion.
Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Chelsea continue to discuss internally a potential move for Atletico Madrid’s Samuel Omorodion having seen a bid worth €40m rejected by the La Liga club. Atletico remain hopeful of keeping the player at the club this summer as they see the 20-year-old as a big talent for the future, with his value potentially rising to around €90m down the line.
“However, Chelsea are not giving up on the player and are waiting to see what happens with Omorodion on the club side. Meanwhile, the Premier League team have made contact on the player’s side and are trying to find out if the forward is open to a move to Stamford Bridge ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.
“Let’s see if they attack this transfer strongly or if they go down the route of Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran as the Blues continue to assess their striker targets internally.”
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On a potential deal for Boca Juniors youngster Anselmino, Romano added: “Chelsea’s interest in Boca Juniors’ talent Aaron Anselmino is genuine and the Premier League club are looking into how to complete a deal for the 19-year-old talent.
“Discussions are ongoing with all parties involved to understand the details of the release clause in the Argentine’s contract, which is set at $25m. There has been no formal proposal yet, but for sure Chelsea are monitoring him among many talents for the future.
“It remains to be seen how strong Chelsea will push for Anselmino as he is a very talented centre-back. Many clubs in Europe have been monitoring him from Spain and Italy, but I can say that Chelsea are now the frontrunners for the player.”
