Football Transfer News: Teenage sensation Carney Chukwuemeka reaches an agreement with Chelsea

The clubs announced Tuesday night that the 18-year-old had received permission to fly to London to discuss personal matters and get a medical before a long-term transfer.

In an official, Chelsea confirmed: "Aston Villa and Chelsea can confirm that the clubs have reached an agreement for the permanent transfer of Carney Chukwuemeka."

"The 18-year-old has been given permission to travel to London to discuss both personal terms and undergo a medical."

The competition to sign Aston Villa wonder kid Carney Chukwuemeka has seen Chelsea defeat Barcelona and AC Milan, the Blues announced on Tuesday. As a result, the 18-year-old England youth international will be signed by Chelsea for a rumored £20 million transfer fee.

Barcelona and AC Milan were interested in signing Chukwuemeka, an Aston Villa Bodymoor Heath academy graduate who won the European Under-19 Championship with England this summer.

While there was a lot of interest in England as well, other teams in Italy and Germany were keeping an eye on the situation, and Chelsea appears to have won the race to sign him.

With only one year left on his contract at Villa Park, Chukwuemeka declined numerous offers to sign an extension despite interest from several European rivals.

Since making it apparent that the attacking midfielder would play a significant role in their future, Villa had been trying to extend his contract. However, they believed they wanted a sizable price should he decide to depart during this transfer window.

Boss Gerrard had left him in England while Villa went on a pre-season tour in Australia, forcing the 18-year-old to practice with the Under-23s group instead.

The Villa manager made his decision public before the players departed the country earlier this summer. He emphasized that Chukwuemeka's removal was primarily due to his refusal to commit to a new contract.

"Carney is yet to sign a contract offer that has been in place for some time now. I've decided the best thing for him would be to continue his training program back at Bodymoor," the team manager told Villa TV.

Gerrard, who had previous season offered Chukwuemeka an opportunity in Villa's first squad, made a significant U-turn with this decision.

The midfielder made 11 games, despite Gerrard's insistence that he stay in the Midlands in December.

"We believe this is the right place for him. If anyone else thinks it's not, then I would like to sit in front of them and discuss it. We don't see a problem. He's got 18 months left on his deal, we just need to let the kid play football," Gerrard continued.

However, he started to draw more attention after excelling for England's Under-19 team as they won the European Championships. Gerrard decided to lock him out of his squad as he got ready for his first entire season in charge at Villa despite the interest in him.

More about Carney Chukwuemeka

Chukwuemeka transferred from Northampton Town to the Villa academy in 2016 and made his varsity debut against Tottenham in May 2021.

The midfielder was voted Villa's Academy Player of the Season for the 2020–21 season and made his senior debut in a 2-1 victory over Tottenham in May 2021.

He made 13 appearances for Villa during the 2020–21 season after making his first professional start in August 2021.

The 18-year-old was reportedly chased this summer by Chelsea, Barca, and AC Milan, with Manchester United, Bayern Munich, and Liverpool also supposedly interested.

After making 12 Premier League games last season, Chukwuemeka is expected to have a bright future. He just helped England win the European Under-19 Championship.

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