Chelsea

Chelsea

Premier League • England

Latest Chelsea starlet gearing up for exit as three Premier League clubs plot raid

Chelsea starlet Xavier Simons

Chelsea could lose another one of their prized academy players this summer as Brighton, Southampton and Norwich are all planning to move in, according to a report.

Chelsea sold pacy right-back Tariq Lamptey to Brighton in January 2020 after the young Englishman revealed his desire to play regularly. The defender was sold for less than £2million but is now worth £16.2m, as per transfermarkt.

To make matters worse for the Blues, Manchester United have now set their sights on Lamptey. The Daily Mail claim Ralf Rangnick’s side would have to pay £40m for his signature.

Chelsea did not learn their lesson from the Lamptey fiasco and allowed fellow academy graduate Tino Livramento to join Southampton during the summer. He has put in multiple impressive performances on the south coast and looks set for a bright future.

Thomas Tuchel is now preparing to lose another young player to an English rival. Goal reveal central midfielder Xavier Simons is out of contract on June 30, and he could leave Stamford Bridge.

The 19-year-old, not to be confused with Paris Saint-Germain wonderkid Xavi Simons, wants assurances from Tuchel that he will be given first-team opportunities.

But the German already has strong options in midfield, including N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic and Saul Niguez. Add loanees Conor Gallagher and Billy Gilmour to that list, and it’s clear to see why Simons may want to move on.

Brighton, Southampton targeting Chelsea man

The England youth international is on the radar of Brighton, Southampton and Norwich. All three of those clubs have a habit of giving young players senior game time.

Simons is also a target for several Championship teams, according to the report. However, they remain unnamed at this time.

Chelsea lead race against Barcelona for Leeds winger Raphinha this summer

Chelsea lead race against Barcelona for Leeds winger Raphinha this summer

Chelsea lead the race for Raphinha from Leeds United with Barcelona falling short

Tuchel has reportedly been working with the player in training to improve his game. Simons was also given his first-team debut in the 2-0 Carabao Cup win over Brentford in December.

But that progress may be for nothing in terms of Simons’ Chelsea career, as he prepares to leave for a cut-price fee later this year.

Kai Havertz talks squad competition

Meanwhile, Kai Havertz has insisted that he is enjoying a wide range of attacking positions for Chelsea and offering another option to Romelu Lukaku.

This term, he has contributed seven goals and four assists in 30 appearances in all competitions. What’s more, he has played as a centre-forward, on the left wing and in an attacking midfield role.

On Tuesday, Germany international Havertz played as Chelsea’s centre-forward. He missed two early chances against Lille in the Champions League but opened the scoring from a corner.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror, Havertz said of the Chelsea competition up front: “It is good for me.

“We have a lot of good strikers so it is also good to have a change and not make it easy for the opposition. Today it worked good and I enjoy every forward position.

“We did not play our best football. We could not get the aggressiveness of the last few weeks but we won 2-0 and that is the most important thing. Sunday is another competition and we have to focus on that now.”

READ MORE: Pundits round on Tuchel as Lukaku no-show sees heat rise on ‘huge problem’ at Chelsea