'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUH/8QAFQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgT/2gAMAwEAAhADEAAAAMinFh//xAAdEAACAgIDAQAAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMEAAUGE1GR/9oACAEBAAE/ANfyfXVtRbrGN5JrJWMM8YK51p6fmf/EABoRAQABBQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEAAgMhQaH/2gAIAQIBAT8AbZQ42Dyf/8QAFhEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIA/9oACAEDAQE/AKtQN//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Chelsea have reached an agreement with Serie A outfit Gremio to sign 16-year-old Gabriel Mec, according to reports. The Blues have secured the Brazilian youngster on a seven-year contract.
Enzo Maresca's side have been quite active in the transfer window this summer, splurging money to acquire young talents. The west Londoners have signed Filip Jorgensen (22), Caleb Wiley (19), Marc Guiu (18), Renato Veiga (21), and Omari Kellyman (18).
Tosin Adarabioyo and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall are the only players Chelsea have signed this summer 25 years of age and above. The Blues have also signed 17-year-old talents Kendry Paez for €20 million and Estevao Willian for €60 million, both of whom are set to move to London in July, 2025.
The club have now agreed a deal to sign Gabriel Mec, who is yet to make his professional debut for Gremio. Chelsea will pay a fee worth up to €24 million for the 16-year-old's services, according to journalist Bruno Andrade.
The contract will reportedly be valid for five seasons and include an option to renew for a further two seasons. Mec will remain in Brazil on Gremio's books until he turns 18 in 2026 (via GOAL).
Once he officially becomes an adult, the attacking midfielder will depart Brazil for Stamford Bridge.
"For such an amount, that is shocking" - Pundit slams Chelsea for pursuing 19-year-old star
Former Club Brugge star Franky Van der Elst has laid into Chelsea's hierarchy for their transfer business this summer. The pundit criticized the club's pursuit of Genk goalkeeper Mike Penders.
The Blues have already signed 22-year-old shot-stopper Filip Jorgensen from Villarreal this window. The west Londoners have Djordje Petrovic and Robert Sanchez in their ranks as well.
Reports suggest that they are closing in on another goalkeeper, Mike Penders, and are offering a package worth €20 million for the 18-year-old. The news has not sat well with Van der Elst, who is astounded by the Blues' spending of late.
He said (via HITC):
"To read right after his first official match for Genk that he is on his way to Chelsea, and for such an amount, that is shocking. [This sort of transfer activity is] unprecedented. Maybe even unheard of. What Chelsea are doing now... buying, buying, buying and then hoping that one of the many transfers will pay off – I really do not think is good for football."
"[They] have seven or eight goalkeepers, right? They just paid [around £21 million] for Filip Jorgensen; also a young goalkeeper, but three years older than Penders and already a first-team player at Villarreal for a season. So he will definitely have priority in the near future."
