Cesare Casadei starred at the U20 World Cup on Sunday to send incoming Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino a timely reminder of his talents.
The Italian captained his country against Brazil, lining up opposite soon-to-be Blues teammate Andrey Santos inside the Mendoza Stadium in Argentina.
Casadei was brought to Stamford Bridge from Inter Milan for £12.6m in the summer as the club embarked on a buying strategy billed as “Vision 2030.”
The view is to create a competitive youth team operating under the senior squad capable of plugging gaps when necessary before replacing first-team stars in the years to come.
Santos, who is set link-up with the senior ranks before the start of next season, is another example of that.
Casadei set-up the first goal in a 3-2 victory before bagging a brace in a statement win for the Azzurri.
Pochettino is set to be appointed as the club’s third permanent head coach of the Boehly-Clearlake era and is considering targeting a new midfielder.
N’Golo Kante has been struggling with injuries for much of the past year, while Mateo Kovacic is of interest to Bayern Munich.
