Fireworks are expected as Chelsea prepare to fight Manchester City tooth and nail for the signature of an Argentine attacker, according to reports.
The profile of one Argentine player in particular has skyrocketed over the past few weeks. Claudio Echeverri shone at the recent FIFA Under-17s World Cup held in Indonesia and made his biggest mark against bitter rivals Brazil.
The right-footed attacking midfielder scored a memorable hattrick against Brazil’s U17s in a 3-0 thumping at the quarter final stage.
Echeverri captained his side throughout the tournament and ultimately saw Argentina succumb to Germany during a penalty shoot-out in the semis. Echeverri placed joint-second in the tournament’s top scorers chart with five goals.
The 17-year-old plies his trade at club level with River Plate where despite his tender age, he’s already made four first-team appearances.
A host of Europe’s elite clubs have duly taken note, though according to Spanish outlet Sport, Barcelona had Echeverri in their sights prior to his heroics in Indonesia.
What’s more, Echeverri seemingly put a deal in Barca’s court pre-tournament when revealing he’d love to play for the Catalonians.
“In addition to River, I would like to play for Barca,” said Echeverri.
“I am a big fan of [Lionel] Messi and I saw him play in Barcelona, so I have had this team inside me since I was very young.”
Barcelona step aside, as Chelsea v Man City fight simmers
But according to Sport, Barcelona have voluntarily stepped aside in the race to sign Echeverri due to their inability to compete financially with the Premier League heavyweights.
Man City and Chelsea are both hovering over the talented attacker. Sport state Real Madrid, PSG, AC Milan and Inter Milan are also sizing the player up, but suggest Echeverri’s future is likely to lay in England.
Man City are labelled frontrunners for the move thanks in part to their connections with River Plate.
Indeed, the Argentine side are who City signed Julian Alvarez from back in 2022.
However, Chelsea are determined to crash the party and per Sport, ‘are willing to go all out’ for Echeverri.
The youngster will turn 18 on January 2 and as such, will be eligible for a transfer to Europe at that time.
On the subject of how much a deal will cost, The Mirror claimed Echeverri’s deal with River Plate contains a two-pronged release clause.
Clubs can sign Echeverri if paying €25m (£21.4m). However, if bids are tabled in the final 10 days of any window – be it winter or summer – the clause rises to €30m (£25.7m).
Neither of those figures are likely to dissuade City or Chelsea, unlike Barca who have well-documented financial troubles.
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