Armando Broja has been backed to one day replace Romelu Lukaku at Chelsea.
The Albanian is currently in the midst of a loan spell with the Blues’ Premier League rivals Southampton and has impressed during his debut season in the English top-flight.
He currently has seven goals from just 13 starts in all competitions for the Saints this season - that form following a campaign in which he netted on 11 occasions for Eredivisie outfit Vitesse Arnhem.
The 20-year-old will be keen to continue those sorts of displays throughout the remainder of the season as he eyes a return to Stamford Bridge in the summer.
His former Vitesse teammate Thomas Bruns has been left impressed by Broja ’s form for Southampton and has backed the young striker to play a pivotal role in the first team in west London, having seen a fellow academy graduate do exactly the same.
Talking to Dutch outlet Voetbal, he said: “He sees Mason Mount as his example.
“He also did well at Vitesse and is now a key player at Chelsea.
“No shocking numbers, but apart from those ten goals, he has shown what other qualities he has. I think he can make it to the first team at Chelsea within four years.
“That will also be his goal. They will need a new striker anyway if Lukaku wants to move on in the long run. I think he could do that.”
Bruns’ evaluation of Broja’s goalscoring abilities come at the exact time that Chelsea have been faced with significant decisions over the future of their attack.
Club record £97m summer signing Romelu Lukaku caused quite a stir over the past few months with his controversial comments that he was not totally happy at Stamford Bridge and was potentially eyeing a return to former club Inter Milan in the future.
Meanwhile, reports have also suggested that Broja has drawn plenty of attention due to his performances for Southampton.
It was claimed that the Saints were preparing a £25m club-record bid to secure his services on a permanent basis, whilst it was also suggested that newly-rich Newcastle United were eyeing a big-money swoop for the Albanian.
In the end, a move failed to be agreed before the end of the January transfer window but the Blues could potentially have another decision to make in the summer, with that interest likely to remain should he continue his positive form.
