Sources: Chelsea plot raid on Middlesbrough for highly-rated midfielder Fin Cartwright as Pochettino eyes future domination
TT understands that Chelsea are looking to lure highly-rated Middlesbrough youngster Fin Cartwright to Stamford Bridge this summer.
The 16-year-old midfielder is the latest graduate of Boro’s famed academy and became the club’s second youngest player of all time when coming off the bench in their League Cup win over Huddersfield earlier this season.
Chelsea’s current project is focused on landing the world’s best young talent. That is not just about landing players from Europe and South America, though, but also domestically.
Chelsea have already moved to for Sunderland’s 14-year-old goalkeeper Toby Bell. They also lured 17-year-old left-back Ishe Samuels-Smith away from Everton earlier in the window.
Now, they are hoping to follow that up with a possible move for Cartwright – who they have highlighted as a player of huge potential.
Mauricio Pochettino has brought in several high profile stars this summer but also has one eye on the future. Cartwright could become a superstar, so the manager will hope they can agree a deal with Middlesbrough in the next few days.
Carrick on Manchester United transfer example as Middlesbrough evolve
“Players from all sorts of different teams at every level move on, that is football, it happens,” said Carrick.
“Even at Manchester United, they had a history of losing players and finding a new way to cope without them. We were always able to adapt. Looking back at when we lost Cristiano Ronaldo and all those goals. It wasn’t necessarily about bringing in someone who could score the same amount of goals as him. It was not about finding another player who could score 30 or 40 but making sure more players chipped in, sharing them out a bit more.
“History proves that is what every team has to do at some stage. And that is my challenge right now, bringing the best out of what’s next and making the most of what we have now and we’ll certainly try to do that.”
That’s not to say Boro don’t want to strengthen in attack. They’re understood to be targeting a striker and a No.10 ahead of next Friday’s deadline, but the players who they want to sign won’t necessarily possess the same qualities as Akpom or Cameron Archer, who impressed on loan from Aston Villa.
Carrick said: “It is never straightforward and rarely a case of signing like for like. No two players are the same for getting the goals. It is the same with centre backs, they all have different attributes, different skills.”
Replacing Akpom and Archer as well as the likes of Ryan Giles, Aaron Ramsey and Zack Steffen was never going to be easy, but Carrick says the challenge for Boro is to build again.
“Credit to the boys, they had a good season last year and that showed their quality in terms of where they are now,” he says.
“I’m pleased for them. For us, it is about evolving and finding the next best solution and striving for high standards whoever it may be – individually or collectively. That is always the challenge. We cannot rely on last season to make this one a good one. Of course, you can use it to build on and as experience.
“But football is changing all the time and you have to evolve and come up with different ideas all the time. That is the beauty of it, you cannot stand still.
“It is not about replacing what is gone, it is all about what we have to do now to achieve success.
“And that could be done in all sorts of different ways, goals that are shared out, set plays, individual goals, there are all sorts of ways of doing it. We have good options, good variety and flexibility. Obviously, there are decisions to be made in terms of team selection but it feels a good place to be and over the course of the season, we will be alright.”