Chelsea are closing in on a deal to sign Everton’s 17-year-old academy star Ishe Samuels-Smith in a deal worth close to £4m, according to reports.
Though the Blues have spent recklessly in the 12 months since Todd Boehly’s takeover, splashing out over £600m in transfer fees alone, they have made signing young talent a priority.
In that time, they have recruited teenage stars Omari Hutchinson, Cesare Casadei, Andrey Santos, Gabriel Slonina and Carney Chukwuemeka, as well as first team players such as Benoit Badiashile, Noni Madueke and Malo Gusto, all of whom are younger than 21.
They show no signs of slowing down in that regard, having been linked with a move for Brazilian sensation Matheus Franca and now closing in on Samuels-Smith in a bid to turn around the fortunes of a club that suffered its worst-ever Premier League finish last season.
Yet to make his debut for Everton and now unlikely ever to, Samuels-Smith is very highly rated across England and was part of the Toffees matchday squad at times last season.
A left-footed left-back, Samuels-Smith can also play in the heart of defence and has impressed for Everton’s U21 side this season, appearing 19 times for the Young Toffees.
He has featured for England at both U16 and U17 level, appearing 11 times in the latter category largely as a central defender since his debut 18 months ago.
Though not a massive fee, it could prove vital to Everton for the improvement of their first team after securing Premier League survival on the final day of last season amid an ongoing financial fair play investigation.
