Barcelona reportedly held a meeting with the representatives of Aston Villa teenage prodigy Carney Chukwuemeka, although a summer move is unlikely.
According to Que T’hi Jugues, Barcelona hold an interest in Aston Villa’s 18-year-old midfield prospect Carney Chukwuemeka. The Catalan club’s officials, Mateu Alemany and Jordi Cruyff met with the teenager’s representatives earlier this week but a transfer in the upcoming summer seems unlikely.
Having started at the academy of Northampton Town, Chukwuemeka made his way to the Aston Villa youth setup in 2016. Regarded as one of the brightest young prospects in England, the 18-year-old has enjoyed a steady rise through the ranks at the Midlands outfit. He has made over 50 appearances for the club’s U-18 and U-23 sides combined, bagging 13 goals and 13 assists apiece.
Chukwuemeka made his first-team debut for Aston Villa in May last year under then-manager Dean Smith. He has since featured 15 more times for the senior side and has one assist to his name. The 18-year-old midfielder is entering the final year of his contract with the Villans and has attracted a lot of interest from within England.
It seems like the list of admirers of the 18-year-old is not limited to England only, with Barcelona also emerging as suitors for the teenage prodigy. Barcelona have enjoyed a lot of success by backing youngsters in recent seasons, with the likes of Ansu Fati, Pedri, Ronald Araujo, Gavi, and Nico Gonzalez becoming key parts of the first-team setup at Camp Nou.
It has led to Barcelona aggressively scouting and recruiting young talent with potential from within Spain and across the globe in recent windows. The Catalan giants already have a deal in place to sign Emre Demir from Kayserispor, while Pablo Torre is also set to arrive from Racing Santander imminently.
More such youngsters with potential could make their way to the club in the near future, with Barcelona keeping tabs on several prospects such as Unai Hernandez of Girona and Brazilian prodigy Endrick from Palmeiras. And Carney Chukwuemeka of Aston Villa has also emerged as one such target for Barcelona.
As per the update, Barcelona director Mateu Alemany and advisor Jordi Cruyff met with the representatives of Chukwuemeka earlier this week. However, the report clarifies that the Blaugrana are unlikely to sign the 18-year-old this summer as they will find it difficult to fund a move amidst their financial situation.
So, while a meeting might have taken place, it does not seem like there will be any notable progress on Barcelona’s interest in Chukwuemeka. But with clubs from England also keeping an eye on the teenager, Aston Villa will do well to lock him down to a new contract at the earliest.
