Latest news with #Lavia
Scottish Sun
5 days ago
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
How Chelsea wooed Liam Delap thanks to ‘secret agent' who Pep Guardiola first spotted at U15 tournament seven years ago
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) LIAM DELAP didn't wait long to complete his move to Chelsea - thanks to the influence of some old colleagues. The striker was on the radar of several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, but the Blues turned on the charm to woo him to Stamford Bridge. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Liam Delap opted to move to Chelsea instead of Man Utd Credit: Alamy 4 Pep Guardiola's scouting seven years ago led to Delap joining the Blues Credit: Getty Delap, 22, joins Chelsea for £30million after netting 12 goals at relegated Ipswich last season. But the story of his move to West London begun seven years ago at a tournament named after Kevin De Bruyne. The Under-15s KDB Cup in Gent, Belgium, sees some of the top youngsters in the world go head-to-head. It is a scout's dream and top sides send their best talent spotters to the games. READ MORE IN FOOTBALL BRIDGE OF BYES Chelsea begin transfer firesale with 14 stars up for sale including Madueke Back in 2018, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola went to the tournament himself and was impressed by a 14-year-old Romeo Lavia. He joined the club from Anderlecht as soon as he became old enough on the recommendation of the Spaniard. But just two senior City appearances later he joined Southampton as Lavia became another highly-rated teenager that decided to move on instead of fight superstars for a place in Guardiola's XI. Lavia spent just a season on the South Coast before Chelsea splashed a reported £53m on him in 2023. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 4 4 Romeo Lavia has been dubbed a 'secret agent' after rumoured conversations with Delap Credit: Getty But during his days at the Etihad, the Belgian midfielder called Delap a team-mate. Both were in City's star-studded youth set-up and were close pals. Inside Chelsea's Conference League final celebrations as Moises Caicedo sings karaoke into the night The Daily Mail report that "agent Lavia", which he has been labelled by fans, helped convince Delap to move to Chelsea. Though the links to City in this transfer do not stop there. He was team-mates with Cole Palmer in their youth days. Meanwhile, Enzo Maresca was assistant to Guardiola and worked with youngsters during his time in Manchester. The boss already knows Delap well and helped sell the Chelsea project to him. He reportedly told the striker to envision himself leading the line for the club during their Conference League final win over Real Betis last week. Additionally, Chelsea's co-director of recruitment and talent Joe Shields was formerly at City. The transfer chief is said to have a strong relationship with Delap and his family, which helped clinch the deal. Other reports state that Thomas Tuchel told the player to join Chelsea as playing in the Champions League would boost his chances of an England call-up for next summer's World Cup. DONE DEAL The deal is now signed and sealed and Delap can get straight to work as Chelsea look to win the Club World Cup this summer. Following the move the youngster said: "I understand the stature of this club and can see the trajectory it is on with these players and the head coach. "It's going to be an incredible place for me to develop, and I hope to achieve amazing things here and help the club win more trophies." He was also quick to speak of his excitement about reuniting with those familiar faces. On Maresca, he said: "He is an incredible coach and helped us all develop so much. What we did that season was record-breaking, and what he's gone on to achieve - and what the players in that age group have achieved - is incredible. "He has a great understanding of the game. He was very detailed in how he approached things with us and while it can be hard at that age to take on so much information, he brought it across in a way we understood and could put into our games. "I think it's proved in the years since how much it has helped." On playing alongside Palmer once more he beamed: "Cole is incredible in everything he does. I can't wait to be in front of him again and receive his passes!" He added about Lavia and Palmer: "We grew up and played some incredible football together. I spoke to them about joining and I am excited to play alongside them again. "I also know Levi [Colwill] a bit as we faced each other hundreds of times when we were growing up. It's always nice to know people [when you join a new club], and I've spoken to a few of them and asked them for advice. "They've told me how great a place it is and I'm really excited to come and play alongside them." Join SUN CLUB for the Chelsea Files every Tuesday plus in-depth coverage and exclusives from Stamford Bridge
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chelsea: Why isn't Romeo Lavia playing in the Conference League final?
Chelsea will contest the Conference League final tonight as they look to secure a first piece of silverware since 2021, but will be without a key player. Romeo Lavia will not be eligible to play for the Blues tonight, despite travelling to Wroclaw with the squad and being pictured in pre-match training sessions at the Stadion Miejski. The central midfielder has struggled with injury throughout this campaign, a persistent hamstring issue limiting him to just 16 Premier League appearances, but he has been key to restoring Chelsea's balance in the middle since returning in late April, playing a starring role as Enzo Maresca's side clinched Champions League qualification on the final day of the season with a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest. Lavia has not appeared in the Conference League since making a seven-minute cameo against Swiss side Servette in the qualifying play-off first leg in August, a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge. That will be his final involvement in the competition, though, as he has not been named in the squad to face Real Betis in the final. He was not named in Chelsea's squad for the knockout stages, and cannot be added due to UEFA regulations. Said regulations stipulate that squads be split into an 'A' and 'B' list. The A list cannot be changed once submitted, though the same is not true of the B list, which can be updated until midnight the day before a game. In order to be added, though, players must have been born after January 1, 2004, and been with their club for at least two uninterrupted years. Lavia, born on January 6, 2004, satisfies the age requirement, but, having signed to Chelsea on August 18, 2023, has not yet been with the club long enough to be added. Three other ineligible players have travelled with the squad in reserve goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli, injured defender Wesley Fofana, and Aaron Anselmino. Mykhailo Mudryk is expected to watch the tie, having been spotted mingling with fans in Wroclaw, but did not travel with the club. He remains provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance in December, a charge he denies.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Chelsea: Why isn't Romeo Lavia playing in the Conference League final?
Chelsea will contest the Conference League final tonight as they look to secure a first piece of silverware since 2021, but will be without a key player. Romeo Lavia will not be eligible to play for the Blues tonight, despite travelling to Wroclaw with the squad and being pictured in pre-match training sessions at the Stadion Miejski. The central midfielder has struggled with injury throughout this campaign, a persistent hamstring issue limiting him to just 16 Premier League appearances, but he has been key to restoring Chelsea's balance in the middle since returning in late April, playing a starring role as Enzo Maresca's side clinched Champions League qualification on the final day of the season with a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest. Lavia has not appeared in the Conference League since making a seven-minute cameo against Swiss side Servette in the qualifying play-off first leg in August, a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge. That will be his final involvement in the competition, though, as he has not been named in the squad to face Real Betis in the final. He was not named in Chelsea's squad for the knockout stages, and cannot be added due to UEFA regulations. Said regulations stipulate that squads be split into an 'A' and 'B' list. The A list cannot be changed once submitted, though the same is not true of the B list, which can be updated until midnight the day before a game. In order to be added, though, players must have been born after January 1, 2004, and been with their club for at least two uninterrupted years. Lavia, born on January 6, 2004, satisfies the age requirement, but, having signed to Chelsea on August 18, 2023, has not yet been with the club long enough to be added. Three other ineligible players have travelled with the squad in reserve goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli, injured defender Wesley Fofana, and Aaron Anselmino. Mykhailo Mudryk is expected to watch the tie, having been spotted mingling with fans in Wroclaw, but did not travel with the club. He remains provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance in December, a charge he denies.
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Chelsea without key man for Europa Conference League final as UEFA step in
Chelsea will play in Wednesday's Europa Conference League final without Romeo Lavia as the young midfielder is unable to be added to their squad - meaning he will miss out Chelsea will be without Romeo Lavia for the Europa Conference League final against Real Betis after being told they cannot add him to their squad list. The Blues will be eyeing a European trophy when they head to Poland. Wednesday night's encounter can see Enzo Maresca land a trophy in his first season with the west Londoners hot favourites to win the competition. They will have a number of their big names available but Lavia will not be up for selection. Chelsea cannot alter the A list squad they have listed for the Europa Conference League, but they can add an unlimited players to their B list until 11pm the night before any game - provided they meet the criteria. However, Lavia is not eligible to be added before the final, as first reported by The Daily Mail. The 21-year-old was born after January 1, 2003, which ticked one box for the B list, but he has not been with the club for a long enough period, which means he must sit out. Nicolas Jackson has led the club's line for much of the season but has been absent in recent weeks through suspension. He will return however for the final, which will have no bearing on what tournament Chelsea play in next season. The Blues saw off Nottingham Forest on the final day which saw them secure a spot in the top five. That has granted them a spot in next season's Champions League. Even victory on Wednesday would only have seen them qualify for the Europa League. Success on Wednesday night would see Chelsea become the first team to ever win all three European trophies - albeit the Conference League is only its in fourth edition. But Maresca sees that as a big plus as he prepares to face Manuel Pellegrini, whom he worked under as a young coach. The Chelsea boss told UEFA: "It's been a good season, but it can be a great one if we manage to win the Conference League and finish in the top four or five of the Premier League. It would be a way of saying that we are back and that we are a winning club in Europe, and we hope to achieve just that. " We would become the first club in Europe to win every trophy [the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and the Conference League] — that's important." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Metro
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Metro
Cole Palmer claims Chelsea teammate 'will be one of the best in the world'
Cole Palmer has backed Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia to become one of the best midfielders in the world. Lavia joined Chelsea in a £58 million deal from Southampton in 2023 but made just one appearance last season due to multiple injuries. The 21-year-old has also missed a significant portion of the current campaign and has started just 11 Premier League games under Enzo Maresca. Palmer, however, is confident that Lavia's ability will see him reach an elite level at Chelsea. 'I think he's one of the best midfielders I've played with, to be honest,' Palmer told Sky Sports. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we'll send you so we can get football news tailored to you. 'Everyone hasn't seen it because he's been injured, obviously I knew him at [Manchester] City. 'I think everyone will realise, I think he will be one of the best midfielders in the world.' 'He's been injured, hasn't he? So it's been difficult for him. But I think the games he has played this season you see what difference he's made. 'I think when he has a full season playing and staying fit I think everyone will realise.' Meanwhile, Palmer believes Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal should already be regarded as the best player in the world. More Trending The 17-year-old, who has 16 goals and 24 assists this season, has played an integral role in Barcelona's campaign in which they are set to win the domestic treble. 'I think he's the best player in the world, to be honest,' Palmer said. 'Everything… I feel like everything they do just goes through him, just when you watch him… it's mad. 'You can just tell the way he plays that he's confident, he's got no fear, I love watching him.' For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Premier League Player, Young Player and Manager of the Season shortlists revealed MORE: Why are there no Premier League games on Saturday this weekend? MORE: New Arsenal home kit launched as two stars pick fresh squad numbers
