Chelsea to sign Sporting winger Quenda for £40m

· BBC Sport
Quenda has three caps for Portugal Under-21s after making the breakthrough under Ruben Amorim in LisbonImage source, Getty Images

Nizaar Kinsella
BBC Sport football news reporter

Chelsea have agreed a deal in principle to sign Sporting winger Geovany Quenda.

The 17-year-old is expected to sign a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge with an option for an extra season after a fee of about £40m was agreed.

Chelsea have a host of options on both flanks but believe Quenda, who will not join the club until 2026, is versatile enough to play on either side and can beat defenders in one-on-one duels.

The Portugal Under-21 international has scored two goals and has eight assists in 43 matches since breaking through into the first team at Sporting.

The youngster had been linked with a move to Manchester United to reunite with his former manager Ruben Amorim.

'Biggest wonderkid in Portugal'

Joao Paiva, from CNN Portugal, says Quenda is "the biggest wonderkid" in Portuguese football right now and "one of the most exciting".

"We started hearing about Quenda a few years ago, when he was 14 or 15 in the youth teams at Sporting, and he already had some qualities – impressive skills, quickness of the movements and how fast he can be.

"We already consider him a fantastic player, but he has a lot of room to grow.

"Quenda is a fast player, quick player, and this is his first season in Sporting's first team – he didn't start the season as a winger, the position he plays now, he started more as an offensive right-back in the system Ruben Amorim used to play, because Sporting didn't have a good enough option at the time.

"He did extremely well in the first game against Porto in the Super Cup, even scored a goal. He played quite a few games until he was moved up to right and left winger. He has played a majority of the games this season as a left winger."

Paiva says Quenda, who was also called up to Roberto Martinez's Portugal squad on Friday, would be a "good addition" to the Premier League right now, even though he will spend another season in Lisbon before the move.

"The stats this season, he has two goals and six assists, I think they are shy numbers for what Quenda can give," adds Paiva.

"He works more for the team and creates more opportunities than his numbers show, with time and as he grows he will get bigger numbers than this.

"If he went to the Premier League right now, I think he would fit and would adapt to the league."

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