It has become apparent that Jose Mourinho was telling fibs when he recently informed the media that Wayne Rooney was his one and only target for the remainder of the summer. A top Premier League manager misleading the media? Surely not!
So, who has the Portuguese coach recruited? Gonzalo Higuain or Luis Suarez? Wrong. Joining the ranks at Stamford Bridge is an 18-year-old who has a real liking for getting forward.
While Cristian Cuevas may not yet be in the same stratosphere in world football terms as the aforementioned trio, many believe that he has the potential to one day join the elite.
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Having risen through the ranks at O'Higgins, Cuevas is regarded to be one of the brightest prospects in Chilean football at this present moment in time.
He rose to prominence during January's Sudamericano Sub20, scoring during wins over Bolivia and Colombia as the Chilean youngsters qualified for Under-20 World Cup in Turkey.
There he was the youngest member of the Chile squad and featured in four of his nations' five encounters. They were eventually knocked out at the quarter-final stage by Ghana, but once again Cuevas had made an impression.
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Chelsea were already well aware of Cuevas's talent, though, and invited him over to Cobham for a trial in December 2012 where he was accompanied by former Newcastle United midfielder Clarence Acuna. Tweets from the winger's account showed that he had enjoyed his stint: "Best week of my life" and a "dream come true to train with Frank Lampard," he wrote.
The Blues were impressed, but not enough to pay O'Higgins's £2.5m asking price. That alerted Udinese, who have a positive history when it comes to Chilean footballers in the form of Mauricio Isla and Alexis Sanchez. It prompted Chelsea into action and a fee in the region of £1.7m was agreed.
For that the West Londoners are getting a direct and pacey wideman, who can be devastating on the counter-attack. He can also operate at full-back, which has resulted in comparisons with Barcelona's Daniel Alves. Others believe that there are similarities between Cuevas's style and that of Angel di Maria at Real Madrid.
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Although primarily left-footed, Cuevas is no shirker when it comes to using his weaker right foot. Time and again during the Sudamericano he cut inside to either have a shot or play a pass with his right boot.
He is also a competitive individual who does not take losing in the best of spirits - a statement highlighted by his red card for the Chilean youth side earlier this year.
The sheer traffic of attack-minded players in front of him at Chelsea will make establishing himself a difficult task this season. Rancagua-born Cuevas is more likely to be used in the development side with the odd outing in the Capital One Cup or a Champions League group encounter.
Chelsea have made a conscious effort of late to overhaul their transfer system, with more emphasis on younger talent. Cuevas fits the bill.
Liam Apicella
