"What a moment! Words can’t describe how amazing this feels, thank you so much to my family friends and everyone at the academy for helping me achieve this. Cant wait for the 21/22 season."
Almost one year ago Armando Broja was celebrating signing a five-year contract with Chelsea.. The Albania international had returned from a season on loan at Vitesse and became part of Thomas Tuchel's first team training group with much of Chelsea's squad at Euro 2020.
The striker in many respects bucked the trend of his teammates by penning the new deal as Tino Livramento, Lewis Bate, Myles Peart-Harris, Dynel Simeu and Marc Guehi all departed Stamford Bridge for pastures new, searching for their route to first team football.
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Even when Broja agreed to join Southampton on loan, it felt the natural progression for the 20-year-old goalscorer to go and get some top-level experience in only his second year of senior football. But just 12 months on, the situation doesn't seem so simple.
Broja is expected to join the rest of Chelsea's squad on the pre-season tour of the USA but did not travel with his teammates at the weekend. Speculation of interest from other clubs only appears to be growing, with West Ham having shown strong interest, while Everton are keen, as are other clubs across Europe.
Chelsea's stance has always been that Tuchel would have a look at the Cobham product this summer before any decision is made. With less than four weeks until the season kicks off, however, it doesn't leave a great deal of time for decisions to be made.
Broja is believed to be realistic in terms of the playing time he sees Chelsea as being able to offer in the coming season, but with Romelu Lukaku on loan at Inter Milan, he is currently the first team's only striker in addition to Timo Werner.
The youngster is still early in his development following a solid loan at St Mary's where he netted nine goals but perhaps showed signs of needing to acclimatise to the league still, as opposition sides slowed his progress in the latter stages.
Nevertheless, Broja showed enough to pose Chelsea a question. Now, Todd Boehly and Tuchel must be convinced themselves and then be able to convince Broja that a pathway exists from the academy to the first team. Some of the Blues' biggest stars have come from Cobham, but that does not necessarily mean it's an easy step to make.
It won't be an easy choice. The Blues' operate from a position of strength, given Broja's contract runs until 2026. Any offers this summer could prove a temptation for both Chelsea and their young starlet. There is no guarantee the same value will be there in the future for either party, and any transfer could prove to be life-changing for Broja in terms of the security it would provide, while the £30 million fee referenced would be significant for any club.
Whether a talent like Broja can at a minimum garner an opportunity at Stamford Bridge may be used as a guide by the next generation, however. Harvey Vale has been included in the first team squad for Chelsea's pre-season tour, but has less than 12 months remaining on his contract.
He is joined by a plethora of development teammates such as Charlie Webster in that position. If another group of youngsters depart the club, it could form a pattern at a younger age than the Blues would like.
Whatever the outcome for Broja this summer, it could be key to deciding more than his own future.
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