Chelsea target £35m La Liga winger in latest youth-driven transfer move | OneFootball

Chelsea Chase Rising Real Betis Star as Youth Revolution Rolls On

Spanish Starlet Joins Stamford Bridge Radar

Chelsea’s endless search for tomorrow continues today. As reported by The Daily Mail, the West London club have turned their gaze to Spain — specifically to Real Betis — where 19-year-old Jesús Rodríguez is rapidly making a name for himself. His price? A modest £35 million, in the current market of financial fiction.

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Rodríguez has caught the attention of scouts with the sort of attributes that still cause football directors to break out in knowing grins: “lightning quick,” technically sharp, and blessed with the kind of work rate that sends full-backs into early retirement. In just 22 appearances since debuting in October, he’s lit up La Liga with energy and invention — a left winger who drifts inside, a menace across the front line, and a player who, whisper it, can actually beat his man.

With Manchester United’s loaned winger Antony back in the dugout shadows and Jadon Sancho likely returning to Old Trafford after his Dortmund detour, Rodríguez has stepped up for Betis — and Chelsea, ever eager to be first at the buffet, are circling.

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More Talent Than Time

Geovany Quenda has already been signed and shelved on loan, another teenager tucked into Chelsea’s ever-expanding list of future possibilities. Rodríguez may suffer the same fate, purchased now and parked elsewhere — the modern club’s idea of player development by stockpiling.

But his performances suggest he’s more than just a long-term project. Spain U19s have already seen him lift the European Championship. In Seville, he’s no longer a secret. With Jesús Navas growing older and Antony unlikely to stay, Rodríguez is filling voids with confidence, not merely potential.

Manuel Pellegrini trusts him. That, in itself, says plenty.

United’s Waste, Chelsea’s Opportunity

While Chelsea shop, United attempt to offload. Sir Jim Ratcliffe, in one of the more brutally honest dissections of a squad ever uttered by a co-owner, recently said:“Some are not good enough and some probably are overpaid.”He added,“We’re paying £17m to buy [Sancho] in the summer… whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.”

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Chelsea, for all their own spending, are pivoting away from bloated contracts and towards athletic, hungry players like Rodríguez. On paper, at least, the strategy makes sense.

Long-Term Vision or Repeat Cycle?

Chelsea’s obsession with youth can be lauded — or lampooned — depending on where you stand. They’re building a squad for 2027 while needing results in 2025. Rodríguez may never play a minute at Stamford Bridge. But equally, he might just be the one they actually get right.

A future of dazzling wing play and smart recruitment? Or another name lost in the spreadsheets? Time, and loans, will tell.

Our View – EPL Index Analysis

Jesús Rodríguez is everything the Chelsea attack has lacked at times — direct, pacey, and fearless. He doesn’t wait for space; he creates it.

The kid’s barely 20 and already looks like someone who relishes the pressure of taking on a full-back one-v-one. That’s what Chelsea need — not more sideways wingers, but someone who will turn and run. And sure, if he’s loaned back for a season to keep progressing under Pellegrini, that’s not a bad thing. Look at what it’s done for players like Levi Colwill.

The club is going after players with upside, not just resale value. Rodríguez has that spark. If they’re smart, they bring him in, integrate him slowly, and let him become something special. Think pre-Barcelona Pedro — a menace with end product.

£35 million? In this market, that’s worth the gamble.