Chelsea will prioritise a move for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia when the transfer window reopens in January, according to agent Haydn Dodge.

Joe Shields has joined the Blues from the Saints in a recruitment role recently and it appears he has recommended that the club pursue the Belgian Under 21 international. Dodge claims the teenager is very highly rated:

“One of the players at the top of their list to bring in, in January will be Southampton’s Romeo Lavia, who, in my opinion, is a superstar in the making and Belgium’s future captain.”

Lavia only joined Southampton from Manchester City for £10.5m in the summer, and he has made just six league appearances for his new club so far, but it seems like he could be a priority target for Chelsea to strengthen their midfield options.

Without Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante in the starting lineup, Graham Potter’s side looked devoid of energy in the middle of the park during the 1-0 defeat to Arsenal at the weekend.

Lavia looks like the perfect solution but it should be pointed out that his previous club City do have a buyback option on the player which is said to be worth £40m. We shall see if the Premier League champions decide to compete with Chelsea for the midfielder’s signature in the New Year.