Chelsea have been handed the opportunity to sign highly-rated Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsi in a swap deal following reports in Spain that Mauricio Pochettino pushed to sign the 16-year-old in the summer.

Cubarsi is yet to make his professional debut for Barcelona but has attracted interest from the Blues. Despite interest from the Premier League, the centre-back opted to extend his stay at the Nou Camp.

His new contract reportedly includes a PS13million release clause and Sport have claimed that Cubarsi was tempted by the project in west London. A move hasn't been ruled out in the future either, with the same report suggesting that Chelsea would be more than willing to activate his release clause.

Now, a fresh opportunity has been presented to Todd Boehly and Chelsea ahead of the January transfer window that could see them sign the defender for nothing. According to Sport, the La Liga champions are pondering the possibility of including Cubarsi as part of their attempts to sign Ian Maatsen.

The Dutch defender returned from his loan spell with Burnley last season hoping to force himself into Pochettino's side, with him turning down a late return to the Clarets in the hope of more minutes at Stamford Bridge. Two months later, the 21-year-old has not started a single game.

Reports via The Standard claimed he has rejected two contract offers from Chelsea, leaving Barcelona tempted by the chance to sign him for free next summer. However, a contract extension is said to have been activated to deny the chance of the Blues losing him on a free transfer in the summer.

Barcelona may be forced to include a lump sum in their hopes of signing Maatsen in January. It's likely that at least PS20million could be tempting for Chelsea with Cubarsi another player possibly joining the club's list of wonderkids.

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