Chelsea are building a squad packed with young talent, with the latest teenage prospect on their radar also attracting the attention of some of their Premier League rivals.
Chelsea’s hopes of winning the race to sign Bayern Munich’s youngster Lennart Karl could be further boosted by the fact that Michael Ballack represents his fellow German. Ballack spent four productive years at Stamford Bridge, winning the Premier League in 2010, but it’s also worth noting that he also spent the same time at Karl’s current club.
Karl, 17, is one of the hottest prospects at the Allianz Arena. He made his first-team debut at the Club World Cup in the summer and made his first Bundesliga appearance in August. He scored his first goal for Bayern in last week’s Champions League game against Club Brugge and added his brace with a goal away at Borussia Mönchengladbach at the weekend.
According to reports in Germany, Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City have sent scouts to monitor the teenager. It is said to be unclear whether Bild’s reported relationship with Mr. Ballack will be a deciding factor in any move.
Mr Ballack is also said to have been involved in Mr Karl’s latest contract extension. The attacking midfielder agreed new terms in August and is under contract until the summer of 2028.
Since that extension, Karl has been named in the matchday squad for all of Bayern’s Bundesliga and Champions League matches. He also started in the first round of the German Cup and was part of a front four that included Harry Kane, Luis Diaz and Michael Oliseh.
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Karl signed a contract extension at the same time as fellow teenager Wisdom Mike, and both were praised by sporting director Christoph Freund after reaching an agreement. “Lenaert Karl and Wisdom Mike have been at the FC Bayern campus for many years and have always defined the players of the team,” Freund said.
“Lenat is bold and dangerous in front of goal, technically gifted with precise ball control in one-on-one situations and very versatile in attack. Wisdom has good acceleration, explosive and dynamic drive towards goal and good finishing skills. He is the winger we are looking for at FC Bayern. Both are still very young and have great potential. The future could be theirs.”
If Chelsea were to sign Karl, he would be the latest addition to a squad packed with teenage talent. Jorel Hato, Estebao Willian and Kendry Paes will join this summer, while 18-year-old Sporting CP star Giovanny Quenda is expected to join next summer.
Enzo Maresca’s side had three teenagers on the scoresheet in their recent Champions League victory over Ajax. Estevao, Marc Giu and Tyrik George also scored in the 5-1 win. This is the first time there have been three teenage scorers in a single match in the tournament.
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