Chelsea are reportedly keen to retain the services of Levi Colwill on a long-term basis.
Despite having yet to make a senior outing for the Blues, the 19-year-old is regarded as one of the standout players to emerge from the academy setup in recent years.
The centre-back starred on loan at Huddersfield Town during 2021-22, making 31 appearances as the Terriers only missed out on promotion to the Premier League in the Championship playoff final.
Rather than spend his first full season in the Chelsea senior squad, Colwill was allowed to join Brighton & Hove Albion on loan as part of a deal which saw Marc Cucurella move to Stamford Bridge.
Although the England Under-21 international endured a frustrating start to life at the Amex Stadium under now-Chelsea boss Graham Potter, he has since become a regular under Roberto de Zerbi.
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Eight starts and two substitute outings have been made in all competitions, seemingly increasingly the chances of Brighton pushing to sign the player on a permanent basis in the summer.
However, according to The Athletic, Chelsea have no plans to cash in on Colwill in any of the upcoming transfer windows.
That alleged stance comes despite the West Londoners making three big-money additions since the summer, starting with Kalidou Koulibaly and Wesley Fofana.
Last week, Benoit Badiashile became the latest high-profile name to move to the club on a contract which runs until 2030.
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With more signings expected to arrive before the end of January, there will come a time when Chelsea will have to place more focus on balancing the books given the sheer size of their recent financial outlay.
Selling Colwill while he has two years remaining on his contract appeared to be a route that they may consider given the competition that they have in the middle of defence.
Nevertheless, it is claimed that Chelsea eventually hope to include Colwill in their senior plans, potentially as early as 2023-24 depending on whether Thiago Silva signs a 12-month extension to his contract.
Trevoh Chalobah is also established in the first-team squad, while Bashir Humphreys was handed a debut in the FA Cup tie at Manchester City on Sunday.
Darren Plant
