Chelsea are reportedly prepared to fork out up to £30 million to sign 17-year-old Fulham youngster Luke Harris during the January transfer window.
Chelsea are plotting a winter raid on West London neighbours Fulham for teenage wonder-kid Luke Harris during the January transfer window. That’s according to a report from The Mirror, which claims the Blues have already held advanced talks over a winter move and are ready to pay a whopping £30 million for the 17-year-old.
Since Todd Boehly’s arrival, the Blues have made significant efforts to cherry-pick some of the best young prospects around the globe. They snapped up Arsenal’s Omari Hutchinson, Aston Villa’s Carney Chukwuemeka, and Inter Milan’s Cesare Casadei last summer, and look set to continue adding quality to the youth ranks with Graham Potter now at the helm.
The Blues are already expected to make another bid for Arsen Zakharyan, and it now looks like Fulham wonder-kid Luke Harris has also captured the imagination of Todd Boehly & co. Chelsea scouts have been monitoring the 17-year-old since he struck a hat-trick in an Under-21 meeting between the two West London clubs earlier this year.
The midfielder, who is in Robert Page’s Welsh squad ahead of their Nations League clash with Poland on Saturday night, made his first senior appearance for the Cottagers against Crawley Town in the EFL Cup last month and is regarded as the next potential superstar at Craven Cottage, following in the footsteps of previous academy products, Fabio Carvalho and Harvey Elliott.
Fulham’s Luke Harris (2005) in PL2 in 2022:
⭕ vs Southampton
⭕ vs Stoke City
⚽⚽⚽ vs Newcastle United
⚽ vs Aston Villa
⭕ vs Norwich City
⚽ vs Birmingham City
⭕ vs Reading
⚽⚽⚽⚽ vs Burnley⚽⚽⚽ vs Chelsea
⚽ vs WolvesJust the 13 goals in 774 minutes thus far. pic.twitter.com/KVaDHHiMpy
— Scouted Football (@scoutedftbl) September 5, 2022
He netted 13 goals in 18 Premier League 2 appearances for the Cottagers’ youth side last season and has carried over that form into the new season, already bagging four goals from three outings this term. While he has yet to make his first Premier League appearance, it won’t be too long as he made the bench for Fulham in five of their eight Premier League games.
Fulham are well aware of his potential and recently handed the teenager his first professional contract earlier this month, tying him down until 2025. Chelsea are currently in advanced talks to sign the youngster and are hoping to strike the deal in the upcoming winter transfer window. They are prepared to pay an initial £25 million upfront fee, and if certain add-ons are satisfied, the price will go up to a staggering £30 million.
Fulham manager Marco Silva has indicated that if Harris stays at the club, he would receive minutes vital for his development. However, the opportunity to join a Champions League club like Chelsea may be too appealing to pass up for the Wales Under-19 international.
