Chelsea Near Signing Rennes Midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu

Chelsea are on the verge of acquiring French midfielder, Lesley Ugochukwu, from Rennes for €27m (£23.2m).

Ugochukwu, 19, has participated in 47 Ligue 1 matches for Rennes and has also appeared in the Europa League.

Although he has not yet made his debut for France’s senior team, he has represented his nation at under-17, under-18, and under-19 levels.

Chelsea manager, Mauricio Pochettino, recently expressed the need to bolster the team’s midfield.

If a deal is finalized, however, Ugochukwu could be immediately loaned out to Ligue 1 side Strasbourg, as the Blues’ ownership group acquired a majority stake in the Alsace side in June.

Chelsea has outlined a strategy to sign young talents who possess the potential to become future stars of global football, while also trimming their bloated squad after spending £600m over the past two transfer windows.

This summer, Kai Havertz, Mateo Kovacic, and Mason Mount have departed the club for Arsenal, Manchester City, and Manchester United, respectively, while N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly, and Edouard Mendy have joined the Saudi Pro League.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Christian Pulisic have both made the move to Italian giants AC Milan.

Reports suggest that the Blues are pursuing a deal for Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo, but their bids have been consistently rejected, while West Ham has tabled a £40m offer for Conor Gallagher.

In addition to that, Chelsea has already brought in attackers Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson, as well as the Brazilian youngster Angelo Gabriel.