Chelsea want to keep Armando Broja, who continues to impress at Southampton, says journalist Tom Barclay.

The 20-year-old joined the Saints on loan last summer and is now being linked with a permanent switch to St Mary's.

What is the latest news involving Broja?

According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Southampton are ready to launch a record £25m bid to sign Broja permanently.

In his short time on the south coast, the Albanian forward has quickly won over Ralph Hasenhuttl, who earlier confirmed that he would ask the club to sign him.

"Sure, he likes it here. He loves it here. It would be great if he was our player, he wants to be with us I think, you can feel this in every moment," the Southampton boss told the Daily Echo and other outlets when asked if he would make a request to his superiors for Broja to be signed.

At just 20 years of age, Broja has managed to score five goals in 967 minutes of Premier League football, making it no surprise that Hasenhuttl wants to keep him at St Mary's.

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What has Barclay said about Broja's future?

While it is quite clear that Hasenhuttl wants to sign Broja permanently, Barclay has told GIVEMESPORT that the noises coming out of Chelsea suggest that the west London club want to keep their academy product.

Speaking to GMS, The Sun journalist said: "The noises are that Chelsea want to keep him. They've got him on a five-year deal and are looking towards next season - integrate him into the first-team squad, give him a chance and then if that doesn't work out, then maybe that's when things change." 

Will Chelsea sell Broja to Southampton?

From Hasenhuttl's words, Broja is clearly happy with life down on the south coast, and that comes as no shock.

The Albania international is getting Premier League minutes and performing. Ultimately, he looks settled at St Mary's, so a permanent transfer makes a lot of sense.

It seems, though, that Chelsea are ready to put a spanner in the works. And even if they do become open to selling their young striker, things may not be that straightforward for Southampton.

Sky Sports has claimed that other clubs also want to sign Broja, which obviously complicates things.

At this stage, it is hard to guess what the future holds for Broja. But with the centre-forward only signing a new long-term deal last summer, you would suspect that Chelsea will have the final say.