Chelsea make striker transfer decision: Move on the cards for highly regarded star

Robin Bairner

• 21 Jan 2026 06:54 GMT
• 3 min read

News

Chelsea are currently plotting their next wonderkid move in the transfer market, with the Blues pondering how best to get the most from Kendry Paez this season.

Paez was snapped up for €10 million by the Blues last summer in a deal that had been agreed some 18 months previously.

He moved on loan to BlueCo sister club Strasbourg in Ligue 1, but he has struggled for minutes and form in France, scoring only one goal in his 21 appearances.

Current ETV

Kendry Páez

AM (C), M (CR)

Strasbourg

Kendry Páez

AM (C), M (CR)

Strasbourg

€13.4M

ETV Range

€12.1M - €14.8M

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Winter recall on the cards

Now Chelsea are looking for a solution to this problem and are exploring the possibility of recalling the 18-year-old attacker and finding him another club.

“Kendry Paez continues to focus on Strasbourg even though a winter recall to his loan from Chelsea is on the cards,” transfer insider Ben Jacobs explains.

“Paez has impressed new manager Gary O’Neil with his professionalism and looked focused in training.

“He is viewed by BlueCo as one of the most talented prospects in his age group in European football.

“Paez is still acclimatising to European football and took it upon himself to make several visits to Cobham ahead of his move to Chelsea being finalised from Independiente del Valle.

“Paez also travelled with Chelsea for part of the Club World Cup in order to meet teammates despite not being part of the official squad.

“Paez remains highly regarded by Chelsea, including new head coach Liam Rosenior. His development is viewed as on track and it will now be decided in the next 12 days whether to explore a second loan move – likely within England – to further help his progress and get the teenager ready for the off-season with Chelsea over the summer.”

Where should Chelsea send Kendry Paez?

A couple of loan options within the Premier League stand out for Chelsea and Paez, according to the analysis of SciSports’ Career Advice.

The tool, which gives clubs a ‘Club Fit’ score based on various criteria from development and game time to style and formation, has earmarked Wolves as a strong fit for the young Ecuadorian star. The Premier League’s bottom club get a strong Club Fit score of 80.

Brighton, a club known for developing talent and which has close transfer links with Chelsea, scores 76. The Seagulls, though, only get two stars for Playing Time, suggesting that this is not the move that the Blues will pursue for their purposes here.

A strong alternative, if Chelsea want Paez to maximise his playing time, would be to drop down to the Championship to Southampton. Saints have a Club Fit score of 72, but earn four stars in terms of playing time and are a solid match in terms of style and formation.