Corinthians youngster Gabriel Moscardo confirms Chelsea approach

Corinthians youngster Gabriel Moscardo has suggested that he expects interest from Premier League clubs during the January transfer window.

The 18-year-old has enjoyed his breakthrough campaign with the Brazilian giants this season, making a total of 23 appearances in all competitions.

Most notably, the teenager has made 13 starts and three substitute outings in the top flight, with his club currently 11th but still in contention for eighth spot.

However, his rapid development has naturally led to speculation that he could soon become the latest Brazilian starlet to make the switch to Europe.

Since September, each of Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Barcelona have all been credited with an interest in Moscardo.

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With the prospect holding a contract with Corinthians until the summer of 2026, they remain in a strong position to retain his services for the foreseeable future.

Nevertheless, the Brazil Under-23 international has hinted that discussions are expected to take place after the conclusion of their season before the end of the year.

Speaking to media in his homeland, as quoted by the Evening Standard, Moscardo said: "To tell you the truth, I have very little information, my father knows a few things, he prefers not to tell me so as not to influence my head too much, to end up taking a little bit of my focus here.

"He says: 'Here your focus is on Corinthians'. Let's wait for the season to end, there are still a few games to go, and we'll see what we can do.

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"Of course there's interest from various clubs, I've also heard about it, there was strong interest from Chelsea a few months ago, but if you stop to think about where I'm going now, at this moment, it's not good. I want to help Corinthians now to get them out of this situation."

Since the arrival of Todd Boehly and Clearlake as Chelsea's new owners in May 2022, they have placed a certain level of focus on acquiring South American youngsters.

The Brazilian trio of Andrey Santos, Angelo Gabriel and Deivid Washington have all signed for Chelsea during that period, while Ecuadorian teenager Kendry Paez has penned terms to move to the club once he has turned 18 years of age in 2025.

Nevertheless, whether Chelsea reignite their interest in January remains to be seen with the club not in a position where they could loan Moscardo out to a foreign team at the midway point of the season having already reached their full allocation for 2023-24.