Chelsea are on the cusp of confirming the signing of Romanian wonderkid Cristian Manea for £2.3 million, as reported by the Daily Star.
The highly rated defender is set to to join the club from Viitorul Constanta in January, with Chelsea having won the race for his signature.
A series of other top European clubs were also said to be interested in signing him, as reported by Dolce Sport, but it was Jose Mourinho and the west London side who managed to secure the player’s future.
His addition will not see him join the first team, however, with Manea set to sign a long term deal at the club and then move out on loan to either Spanish side Mallorca or Chelsea feeder club Vitesse Arnhem, who compete in the Dutch Eredivisie.
The 17-year-old’s signing comes as part of the extensive overhauling that has taken place at Stamford Bridge this summer.
The right back is the youngest ever player capped by the Romanian national side, and has played five games for Viitorul.
