Chelsea and Manchester United offered England international prodigy

Both Chelsea and Manchester United have been presented with the chance to acquire Myles Lewis-Skelly, with Arsenal potentially open to cashing in on the 19-year-old following the recent signing of Bruno Guimaraes.

Lewis-Skelly, a graduate of the Gunners’ Hale End academy who also spent time at Cobham, only penned a contract extension at the Emirates Stadium last year, yet finds himself linked with a summer departure. The England international featured 36 times for Arsenal across all competitions last season, though just 19 of those appearances came from the start.

Since Guimaraes arrived for £75 million ($101 million) over the weekend, Lewis-Skelly has been made available to both Chelsea and Manchester United. Whether either side ultimately pursues a deal remains to be seen, though sources indicate the versatile midfielder has been on Chelsea’s radar for some time, as per football.london.

There is a growing feeling that should Chelsea table an attractive offer for Lewis-Skelly, Arsenal would find it extremely difficult to turn down.

Lewis-Skelly has featured in every preseason fixture as a defensive midfielder, filling in during the absences of Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Mikel Merino and Guimaraes. His performances have been mixed, despite having impressed enormously in the left eight role toward the close of last season — a run of form that earned him a starting spot in the UEFA Champions League Final.

Chelsea have already secured 10 players — including pre-agreed deals — this summer for just over £270 million ($364.5 million). While the Blues’ focus has now shifted toward player departures, no option can be dismissed should an opportunity emerge to strengthen Xabi Alonso’s squad ahead of the upcoming season.

Lewis-Skelly is primarily a central midfielder but can also provide cover on the left side of defense. Chelsea have signed Pep Chavarria, pending official confirmation, and have Jorrel Hato as options at left back following Marc Cucurella’s exit earlier in the summer.

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In midfield, Alonso can call upon Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Dario Essugo, Valentin Barco and Enzo Fernandez. The latter of the five, Fernandez, still faces an uncertain future at Stamford Bridge but is anticipated to return to training this week.

There is, equally, an expectation that Fernandez will remain a Chelsea player for Alonso’s debut season.

As for United, they have spent frugally so far this window, spending only on Andrey Santos from Chelsea for an initial £48 million ($64 million) and Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa for £35 million ($46.8 million).

In midfield, Lewis-Skelly would be battling for minutes with the likes of Santos, Tielemans, Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo, and Mason Mount. However, they remain thin at left-back, with Luke Shaw expected to start and youngster Harry Amass the only other true left-backs available, while Diogo Dalot, Noussair Mazraoui, and Lisandro Martinez are all capable of filling in.