It’s being rumored that Chelsea FC have a deal in place with Romanian club FC Viitorul Constanta for 17-year-old right-back Cristian Manea. Manea is a product of the Viitorul youth academy and has already made 10 appearances for the club this season. This potential signing is another example of the new Chelsea policy of buying up every promising youngster in Europe and developing them through the academy or through a series of loans.



According to Dolce Sport , Chelsea and Viitorul have agreed to a £2.3million fee for the young defender, set to take place in the January transfer window. There are reports that suggest that the deal is not quite done yet but that both parties have agreed in principle to it.

Should Cristian Manea sign for Chelsea in the winter transfer window, he would most likely be sent right back out on loan for the remainder of the season. Reports suggest that he would be sent directly to Vitesse Arnhem or to Spanish side Mallorca.

Manea has also already been capped at the senior level for Romania, which happened after he had only made five appearances at club level. His appearance also made him the youngest player to ever play for Romania breaking a record that stood since 1928.

Who knows if Cristian Manea will ever crack the Chelsea first team, but when you buy as many youth prospects as the club does, a good number of them will eventually come good. Even if he doesn’t cut it at Chelsea, he could easily be sold for a good profit should he realize a little bit of his potential while on loan. Either way, it is clear that signing the youngster would be worth the gamble.

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