Mauricio Pochettino expressed his eagerness to meet Kendry Paez, an Ecuadorian prodigy who is visiting Chelsea this week and making his Stamford Bridge debut on Tuesday night.

The 16-year-old striker was signed by Chelsea for £17.2 million in June on a pre-contract deal, beating out other teams including Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United.

In the meanwhile, Paez will continue playing for Ecuadorian team Independiente del Valle before he may join Chelsea in May 2025, when he will turn 18 years old.

However, he will be in London this week to see Chelsea’s Carabao Cup quarterfinal match against Newcastle.

After keeping a tight eye on the adolescent since his senior debut for Ecuador earlier this year, Pochettino is reportedly looking forward to finally meeting Paez.

“I am familiar with him,” Pochettino declared. The Ecuadorian national team has him on their roster. Among all the debutantes, he was the youngest. Since he is a member of our squad and someone I’m familiar with, I keep tabs on the national teams, especially those in South America. An exceptional talent, he is.

This week, Pochettino joked that, with Chelsea’s confirmation to play in the restructured Club World Cup in 2025, he will have to extend his contract.

He joked once again that he would have to sign an extension in order to continue working with Paez, as his present arrangement is only good until 2025. As previously mentioned at the [Club] World Cup. Before I can see him here, I have a long wait!