Southampton could sign two young Chelsea stars in the near future

Cobham has built up a reputation for being one of world football’s best academies in recent years due to the high volume of stars that it’s producing. Chelsea’s training ground is essentially an assembly line of hugely talented footballers and seemingly everywhere you look, you find a Cobham product. While the jobs being done by Tammy Abraham, Jeremie Boga and Fikayo Tomori in Italy right now deserve some recognition, the Blues’ academy graduates are doing some of their best work in the English top flight.

One doesn’t need to look far to find examples of this either. Armando Broja (Southampton), Conor Gallagher (Crystal Palace), Billy Gilmour (Norwich), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Tariq Lamptey (Brighton), Tino Livramento (Southampton) and Bertrand Traore (Aston Villa) have all enjoyed success in the Premier League this season. This isn’t even touching on the Cobham graduates within the Chelsea ranks or those who played for—but did not graduate from—the Blues’ academy (Declan Rice). English clubs have begun to realize the gold mine that lies in west London and Southampton is the latest in a long line of suitors to enquire about two academy graduates.

Southampton could sign Chelsea duo Tino Anjorin and Armando Broja soon

Saints are interested in two well-known players around Cobham, Tino Anjorin and the aforementioned Broja. The latter was one of two Chelsea players to join the club this past summer, the other being Dynel Simeu. Simeu joined Southampton on a permanent deal while Broja is spending the season there on loan. The centerback has played for Saints’ youth teams all year. However, the Albanian has been a massive success at Cobham South. That’s essentially what Saint Mary’s Stadium is by now, right? That or the Vitesse Arnhem of the west—pick your poison, Saints fans. Broja has appeared in 21 matches (racking up 1,229 minutes) over the course of the season, tallying seven goals and one assist in all competitions.

Ralph Hasenhuttl has fallen in love with the 20-year-old during the few months Broja has been with the team. He’s also become a favorite amongst the fans. These are only just a few of the reasons Saints are trying desperately to hold onto him beyond the end of his current loan deal. There isn’t likely to be an answer regarding his future by the end of this month though. Broja, who has been with Chelsea since 2009, ultimately dreams of playing for Tuchel’s squad. The two sides have briefly discussed compensation throughout the last few weeks, but the Blues want to wait until this summer before making any decisions regarding his potential sale. West Ham is also interested in the striker. While Broja’s future remains uncertain, Chelsea is not going to just let him walk away. The Blues are almost definitely going to insert a buyback clause in any permanent sale.

The more interesting deal is the one surrounding Anjorin. The 20-year-old was supposed to be tearing up the Russian Premier League right about now. Instead, he’s spent the last few months back in England rehabbing a broken metatarsal. The Blues loaned out Anjorin to Lokomotiv Moscow this summer following his stint with the first team under both Frank Lampard and Tuchel last season. The Russian giants had an option to buy in the initial loan agreement, but there’s a general sense that the midfielder will remain in England, regardless of his next move. This is due to both his serious injury and the fact Ralf Rangnick moved on from his role as Lokomotiv director.

The option to buy displayed Chelsea’s willingness to let Anjorin leave under the right circumstances. Similar to Broja, the only way in which it’d sell him is likely if any potential deal included a buyback option. Anjorin hasn’t been on display as often as some of the other youth products, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t hugely talented.

The Blues’ faithful have grown increasingly frustrated over the last few years as these deals have become more common. This is largely due to the fact that FIFA imposed restrictions around how many players each club can loan out per season. The only thing stopping Southampton from inquiring about Anjorin on a straight loan deal is the Premier League’s rule preventing teams from sending numerous players on loan to the same club. Saints want both individuals, so their solution to this recruitment issue is attempting to purchase one of them. There’s still three days left in the winter window, which is a lot of time to make things happen. That’s especially true between these clubs, who have developed a positive relationship with one another over the last few months.

Do you think the Blues should sell Anjorin and Broja? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!