OFFICIAL SCOUTING REPORT: WHY MAN CITY AND CHELSEA HAVE MADE JEREMY MONGA THEIR TOP PRIORITY
Leicester’s 16-year-old Jeremy Monga is at the centre of a €10m battle between Chelsea, Man City, and Real Madrid this January.
Word is, Leicester City's Jeremy Monga is a hot commodity as we head into January. Chelsea and Man City are supposedly really interested in making a move for him, so I've heard.
This 16-year-old is making a name for himself in European soccer, and it sounds like a bunch of teams are going to try to snatch him from Leicester.
Monga, who plays for England's youth team, made history as one of the youngest players ever to play in the Premier League last season—he was only 15! No wonder everyone's watching him.
He was born in July 2009 and quickly became a star at Leicester's academy. Ruud van Nistelrooy gave him his first shot with the main team, and he's still getting better under Marti Cifuentes.
He's seriously fast, can dribble with both feet, and plays well on either side, reminding some people of Arsenal's Ethan Nwaneri.
Even though Leicester got demoted to the Championship, Monga is still playing great. He's played 14 games in the league and Carabao Cup this season and scored once. People think he's a special player for his age, and he's supposedly worth around €10 million (£8.7m / $11.7m).
Chelsea and Man City really want him, and Real Madrid is ready to jump into the mix too.
Chelsea and Man City are supposedly the favourites for Monga and are keeping a close eye on him.
These clubs are known for trying to get young English talent, and they see Monga as someone who could be a big part of their offence in the future.
Chelsea has had success with young players like him, and City's strong wide players could help him grow.
Real Madrid is also interested. Sources say their scouts have been watching Monga.
Real Madrid has a history of signing young stars like Vinícius Junior and Rodrygo, so they're a serious contender. Playing at the Bernabeu would be a big draw for him.
My colleague, Graeme Bailey, mentioned last week that Tottenham also likes Monga.
But Leicester isn't trying to sell him right now. Monga signed a new contract this summer and will sign his first professional contract when he turns 17 in 2026, which gives Leicester some power.
Leicester's coach, Cifuentes, says he's impressed with Monga's maturity and skill, and he's including him in the first team even though he's so young.
Because of his contract situation, other teams might try to make offers, and we could see a bidding war soon.
For now, Monga is focused on Leicester, but it might be hard for him to turn down offers from Europe's top teams. The team that gets him could be getting a future star.
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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