Chelsea "love" Southampton wonderkid Romeo Lavia and will pursue him in the summer, football transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has exclusively told GIVEMESPORT.Romano has highlighted the link between Joe Shields - currently Chelsea's Co-Director of Recruitment and Talent - and Lavia, with Shields instrumental in forging the Belgian teenager's career to date.

Chelsea transfer news - Romeo Lavia

With Southampton's relegation from the Premier League confirmed, the south coast club must resign themselves to losing their brightest talent just one year on from his signing.Lavia has made 24 starts in the league prior to the trip to Brighton but has been one of the few positives in Southampton's season. Now he is expected to attract interest from a number of top clubs given the player's desire to stay in the Premier League.Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea are all reportedly battling for Lavia's signature in the knowledge that Manchester City's buy-back clause on the player doesn't become active until the summer of 2024. With the futures of Blues stalwarts N'golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic up in the air, the 19-year-old could be the perfect long-term solution for Mauricio Pochettino's midfield.Lavia is expected to set any club back somewhere in the region of £45-50 million after joining Southampton for only £14 million last July, as per BBC Sport.

What has Romano said about Chelsea and Lavia?

Romano told GIVEMESPORT: "Romeo Lavia is a player Chelsea love. Chelsea have Joe Shields at the club, who is the director who signed Romeo Lavia for Manchester City's Academy and then signed Romeo Lavia at Southampton."He's the man who has built the career of Romeo Lavia, so it's normal to have this kind of link. They are pursuing the player but it's not the only option."

Where will Lavia end up this summer?

Given the fact that both Arsenal and Manchester United will likely be offering Champions League football come the end of the season, Chelsea do face an uphill battle to secure Lavia's services. That being said, as Romano points out, the link between the player and Shields cannot be underestimated.With Arsenal and Manchester United potentially focusing on more experienced midfielders such as Declan Rice and Moises Caicedo as priorities, Chelsea could certainly swoop in for Lavia - especially if Kovacic and Kante do both leave the club and Pochettino will be able to offer the still-developing star plenty of first-team minutes.