Chelsea fans have been told to keep an eye on the situation involving Romeo Lavia – purely due to the presence of Joe Shields at Stamford Bridge.
It was Fabrizio Romano who told Chelsea supporters to stay alert to the Belgium international’s situation at Southampton.
So, what is the latest on Romeo Lavia and Chelsea? Let’s take a look…
What’s the story?
Well – according to Sky Sports – the Southampton No.45 is a target for Chelsea, and the Blues are said to be willing to outbid rivals to secure his signature.
That story was published around two weeks ago now, but most of the talk coming out of Stamford Bridge since has been about Moises Caicedo.
Now – however – Romano has explained why Chelsea fans should not forget about Lavia.
The reliable Italian journalist told Give Me Sport: “I will keep an eye on Chelsea until the end of the story because they have Joe Shields, the former director of Southampton and Manchester City, who’s always been close to Romeo Lavia, almost created Romeo Lavia as a player, and so this is why they’re always monitoring the situation.”
It was Shields – now Director of Recruitment and Talent at Chelsea – who signed Lavia for Southampton in a £14m deal from Manchester City back in July 2022.
The 19-year-old blossomed in his debut campaign at Southampton, and many now expect him to end up back at a top six side after the Saints were relegated to the Championship.
Southampton are said to value Lavia at £50m.
Chelsea need to make a decision on Lavia soon
It goes without saying that Chelsea are focusing on Caicedo as a priority ahead of Lavia.
However, talks with Brighton are proving difficult after Chelsea saw a £70m bid rejected.
Lavia is not short of suitors as Liverpool and Arsenal also express an interest, so time is of the essence for Chelsea here.
The Blues surely want to avoid a nightmare scenario where talks for Caicedo collapse, but Lavia has already moved to a Premier League rival, so Chelsea need to make a decision soon.