The onset of the summer transfer window means that the biggest clubs across Europe will hope to dip into the market and bring in quality talent to bolster their respective squads in time for the new season.
With the UEFA European Champions now underway and set to continue over the month-long period, teams will eye up summer moves for some of the biggest young talents in world football one of which is the 18-year-old Sporting Lisbon wonderkid Nuno Mendes.
Mendes, who turns 19 next month, has set off a major race amongst Europe’s top clubs all of whom have registered concrete interest in signing the teenage sensation, with the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Real Madrid all believed to be the mix for the player.
Chelsea’s interest in the full-back has come as a shock to many considering the newly crowned Champions of Europe have a couple of solid options in the left-back role in Ben Chilwell and Marcos Alonso, the former only having arrived at Stamford Bridge last summer.
Moreover, the €70m buyout clause that is in the teenager’s contract with Sporting is only going to make any prospective transfer an expensive affair despite the argument that Chelsea are bound to have a major supply of funds to fork out in this summer’s transfer window which would be their first under Thomas Tuchel.
Nuno Mendes in Liga NOS this season:
🔑29 key passes
🎯7 big chances created
🅰️1 assistYou have blood on your hands, Sporting CP strikers. 😉 pic.twitter.com/KVNnWrkMX4
— Football Talent Scout – Jacek Kulig (@FTalentScout) May 11, 2021
Mendes featured in 29 league outings this past season which witnessed his side Sporting Lisbon break a long drought for title-winning glory and in spite of having scored just once and registered a sole assist, he has made his presence known to a host of scouts watching his game with great interest.
The player’s tender age has not made him devoid of attention from the Portugal camp who have included him in the squad for this summer’s UEFA European Championships where is not expected to be the first name on the teamsheet but will be an influential presence on the bench for the holders of the tournament and will hope to build upon the five international caps he has already gained.
Tuchel is heavily backed to offload Emerson Palmieri this summer amid a couple of Italian clubs such as Inter Milan and Napoli having made their interest known in signing the wing-back who has been a fringe player at the Bridge these past couple of years.
However, should Chelsea also plan on sanctioning the sale of Marcos Alonso who has grabbed significant starting opportunities under the new boss Tuchel, the west Londoners will be expected to table an offer for Mendes with Lisbon not willing to listen to any offers below the buyout clause amount.
It is bound to be a costly deal for the Blues but it would be one which would send the right kind of signals to their rivals in England and abroad that the Champions League winners are here to spend big and seek further trophies under Thomas Tuchel and through the rejuvenated bunch of players on the pitch.
