Chelsea 'monitoring' £43m 'game-changer' transfer

Chelsea are 'monitoring' a move for Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams this summer after a breakthrough campaign from the 21-year-old in La Liga.

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano took to social media to confirm the transfer news. The reporter claimed that Williams was 'already on the list last summer' before the club focused on signing Cole Palmer from Manchester City, and that other Premier League clubs hold interest in Williams.

It is thought that Bilbao are preparing for life without the rising star given a release clause of around £43 million that exists in his contract. Williams would not be the answer to Chelsea's ongoing search for an out-and-out striker but his a serious talent that would add attacking force.

The player can be deployed on both flanks, although prefers the left wing, and has picked up six goals and 11 assists this season. He is the brother of well known La Liga striker Inaki Williams.

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Nico Williams had been hailed as a 'game-changer' by Bilbao manager Ernesto Valverde this season. Spanish outlet Flashscore quote the boss, who said: "He is a young player and everyone is always eager for young players who stand out. He has been a game-changer in both games, he has got involved and is having a good start to the campaign. He is calm and so are we.

"We already know how this football thing goes. Often, when young people appear, there is excitement across the world because of the potential they are supposed to have, but we know that it is a long-distance race in which we have to be calm.

"He is a player who has just broken through, he has a long way to go, we hope it will be here at Bilbao, and he still has to learn things. We help him with that just as we help the rest so that they are comfortable here."