Chelsea have been strongly linked with a move for Romeo Lavia this summer, and now a fresh update has emerged on the club's pursuit of the player.
What's the latest on Chelsea's interest in Romeo Lavia?
According to the Daily Mail, the Blues have maintained contact with Southampton over their young midfielder this summer.
As per the report, the Londoners are still in the race to sign Lavia but will need to compete with Manchester United and Liverpool to secure his signature this summer.
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Following on from this, Liverpool have had a second bid of under £40m rejected with Saints still confident they can demand their £50m valuation.
Will Chelsea sign Romeo Lavia?
There is no doubt that Mauricio Pochettino will be keen to bolster the midfield presence before the transfer window closes in less than a month, especially with Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount, N'Golo Kante, Denis Zakaria and Ruben Loftus-Cheek departing this summer.
Despite a strong focus on refreshing the attacking threat, it will be extremely important for the club to add crucial quality and depth in the deep-lying roles in the centre of the pitch with the acquisition of another player boasting similar qualities to Enzo Fernandez.
As a result, Pochettino could repeat the board's Fernandez masterclass by snapping up the services of Lavia, as the Belgium international is another exciting youth prospect with limited experience at an elite level, but does have bags of potential.
Despite being relegated with Southampton last season, the 19-year-old gem – hailed an "absolute monster" by Independent journalist Benjy Nurick – was a stand-out performer in his role at St Mary's and demonstrated huge strengths during his debut season playing regular first-team football.
As per FBref, Lavia ranked in the top 30% of Premier League midfielders for pass completion, successful take-ons, interceptions and blocks per 90 minutes played over last season, offering glimpses of his confidence in pressing opponents to win the ball consistently.
Not only that, the Belgian sensation has been the recipient of high praise from legendary former top-flight midfielders, with ex-Manchester United pass master Paul Scholes waxing lyrical. He said:
"He has got a pass in his locker and he is big and strong and likes to defend. He does not want to get forward too much and sits in-front of the back four and sets the play in motion from there."
Whilst Fernandez already has a World Cup trophy in his locker, the Blues secured his signature when he was unproven in elite club football – as his experience was mostly earned in the Argentine top-flight with River Plate and in Portugal with Benfica; before completing his eye-watering £106.8m move to Stamford Bridge.
Now Chelsea could get ahead of their Premier League rivals again by snapping up another hot prospect, with the signing of the Manchester City academy graduate who will otherwise be playing in the Championship next season if Saints retain his services.
With that being said, if Pochettino can convince the recently-relegated club to part ways with their prized asset this summer it would be a major coup for Chelsea in setting up a youthful midfield partnership between Lavia and Fernandez that could be unstoppable for years to come.
