Chelsea Transfer News: Ethan Ampadu Interest Amid Arsenal Link, Latest Rumours

Chelsea are reportedly confident of snapping up Exeter City starlet Ethan Ampadu ahead of Arsenal, despite his father working as a coach for the Gunners. 

According to the Mirror's John Cross, the Blues are hoping to recruit the 16-year-old in a £2 million deal and have already made a bid for him.

The holding midfielder made his senior debut for Exeter against Brentford at the age of 15 years and 331 days, and his father, Kwame Ampadu, is an under-18s academy coach at the Emirates Stadium.

Ampadu, who can also play at centre-back, has made nine appearances in all competitions for Exeter this season, including in a 3-2 win over Chelsea's under-23s in the EFL Trophy, where he first came to the Blues' attention.

He has represented both England and Wales at youth level, most recently turning out for the latter's under-19s side. Indeed, earlier in November, he picked up Wales' young player of the year award, per BBC Sport.

Exeter boss Paul Tisdale has accepted it's only a matter of time before Ampadu heads off to more illustrious pastures but hopes he'll remain at the club for the foreseeable future to focus on his development:

A move to Chelsea might seem appealing on the surface, and the Blues' youth teams have done well in recent years—they're two-time UEFA Youth League champions and have won four of the last five FA Youth Cups.

However, few players have broken through the ranks. Indeed, aside from club veteran John Terry, Chelsea's academy graduates have played just 68 minutes of Premier League football this season, split between Nathaniel Chalobah, Ola Aina and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

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Dominic Solanke has not been utilised at all and could soon leave the club. According to an exclusive from the Sun's Mike McGrath, the 19-year-old is in the final year of his deal and negotiations over a new contract have stalled.

McGrath added Solanke—who netted seven goals on loan at Vitesse Arnhem last year—is attracting interest from a number of unnamed top-flight clubs, with whom he can discuss a pre-contract in January.

The Evening Standard's Simon Johnson provided some insight into why the academy product is yet to receive a new deal:

While Solanke's inability to get a game may have been brought on by his struggles to impress, he nevertheless serves as an example of why Ampadu should treat a potential move to Chelsea with caution at this stage of his career.

He would be best served staying put for the time being before moving to a club with a better track record of bringing through young talent.