Chelsea are stepping up their pursuit of Gremio centre-back Luis Eduardo, according to reports.
Journalist Fabio Vargas claims that the Blues are lining up an “official proposal” for the Brazilian starlet worth in excess of €10m (£8.75m).
Eduardo is said to have a €60m (£52.5m) release clause in his contract, so it remains to be seen if Gremio are willing to sell their best young player for a fee significantly below that figure.
It had been anticipated that offers would be made for the 17-year-old, who impressed while playing for Brazil at the Under-17 World Cup last month.
Chelsea could face competition from Premier League rivals
Claims about the Blues’ interest in Eduardo surfaced in the Spanish media at the beginning of December, with Madrid-based publication AS also reporting that Manchester United were weighing up an offer of their own.
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Eduardo will turn 18 in mid-January, so he would be eligible to make the move to Europe next month. That does increase the likelihood of multiple bids for the centre-back over the coming weeks.
Chelsea may well be trying to get their bid in early in an attempt to head off advances from United and other clubs.
What do fans need to know about Eduardo?
The teenager has only played one senior game so far. That came against Tpiranga-RS in the Gaucho State Championship back in February.
Since then, Eduardo has mostly been occupied with international commitments. He played for Brazil in the South American Under-17 Championships prior to travelling to Qatar for the World Cup.
At the tournament, the defender wore the captain’s armband and played every game until the semi-final. Unfortunately, suspension meant that Eduardo was powerless to prevent his team from being knocked out by Portugal on penalties.
Read more about the Chelsea First Team Squad for 2025/26 here