According to The Daily Mail, Chelsea have agreed terms with former Brighton & Hove Albion youngster Zak Sturge. The 18-year-old left back had caught the eye of Spurs and Leeds, but it’s the Blues who have secured his signature.
Sturge has represented England at youth level and looks set to have a bright future ahead of him. The youngster left Brighton at the end of last season when his contract expired, having never played for the senior team (Transfermarkt).
Chelsea have already splashed out on big signings like Raheem Sterling from Manchester City and Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli, for a reported combined fee of over £80 million (Transfermarkt). Now, it seems they are keen to add to their youth prospects, too.
This marks Chelsea’s second addition to their under-23 squad this summer, after acquiring Omari Hutchinson from London rivals Arsenal (ChelseaFC.com).
With an academy that has produced the likes of Reece James and Mason Mount in recent years, Chelsea clearly want to maintain that level of quality.
The move is a potential blow to Spurs, who could also benefit from adding more homegrown talent to their development roster.
Spurs Web Opinion
It’s never nice to miss out on signing an exciting young player, but it’s especially frustrating to see a rival club like Chelsea get their man ahead of us.
However, while the future is certainly important, everyone at the club will be far more focused on the here and now, delivering success with the current first-team squad.
With Ivan Perisic and Ryan Sessegnon operating on the left side of defence, it’s unlikely a youngster like Sturge would have got a look in with the first team for the foreseeable future anyway.
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