Chelsea are set to close a deal for Chilean youngster Cristian Cuevas.

The Mirror says the O'Higgins winger, 17, was one of the stars of January's South American under-20s Championship with Chile, but while his dazzling performances in Mendoza alerted many clubs to his potential, the Blues had been following the youngster for far longer and were forced to swoop now.

The left-sided starlet was invited over to train with the club in December and described it as "something [he] will never forget... the best experience that [he has] ever had," and he obviously did enough to impress Stamford Bridge bosses who will pay nearly 2.5billion Chilean Pesos for his signature, just over £3.4million.

A deal insider revealed that the paperwork will be signed imminently, but that the player will see out the rest of the Torneo Transición season with O'Higgins.