The latest on a few Chelsea youngsters who could be set for loan moves this summer and one player who is on the verge of departing for the upcoming season
Shim Mheuka
Shim Mheuka is expected to sign a new-and-improved contract at Chelsea(Image: Chelsea FC)
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Chelsea defender Ishe Samuels-Smith has agreed to join League One side Notts County on a season-long loan deal, football.london understands.
The 20-year-old defender, who joined the Blues' academy from Everton in 2023, is set to move to the Magpies for the upcoming campaign in a bid for regular first-team minutes. Chelsea and the third-tier club have reached an agreement for Samuels-Smith and the defender has also agreed personal terms over a move to Meadow Lane.
Sources close to the youngster believe Notts County is the perfect loan with Martin Paterson's team playing a brand of football that Chelsea like. Samuels-Smith featured just six times in a disappointing loan spell with Championship side Swansea City last season in an injury-disrupted campaign.
Samuels-Smith has almost fully recovered from having surgery on his quadriceps in April. The plan was for Samuels-Smith to be part of Xabi Alonso's first-team training group before they flew out for their recently-concluded pre-season tour, however the defender did not recover in time to be involved in the sessions.
Elsewhere, Omari Kellyman is weighing up his options ahead of a likely loan move for the upcoming season. The 20-year-old playmaker was part of Alonso's group for their four-country tour recently and was involved in two of Chelsea's five matches overseas.
Kellyman was a late addition to the squad following injuries sustained by Geovany Quenda and Emmanuel Emegha around 24 hours before the Blues flew to Sydney for the first leg of their tour. The plan is for Kellyman to leave on loan for the upcoming campaign, and after an impressive spell at Cardiff City last term, the former Aston Villa man is not short of potential suitors.
Omari Kellyman
Omari Kellyman is likely to leave Chelsea on loan (Image: Ayush Kumar/Eurasia Sport Images)
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However, Kellyman is said to favour a move abroad and sources close to the player insist a decision will not be rushed before next month's transfer deadline.
Meanwhile, Shim Mheuka is in line to sign a new long-term contract at Stamford Bridge, as exclusively revealed on football.london last month. The 18-year-old striker has plenty of admirers from England as well as abroad. Mheuka is expected to pen a new deal at Chelsea before moving elsewhere on loan for the upcoming season.
While no agreement has been reached at the time of writing, multiple sources insist negotiations are continuing to move in the right way. Mheuka has less than 12 months remaining on his current contract but Chelsea have an option to extend the deal by another year.