AS Monaco are closing in on tying down highly-rated defender Melvin Gomes to a new professional contract, seeing off interest from Chelsea in the process.
According to French outlet L’Équipe, the 18-year-old is poised to put pen to paper on a three-year deal at the Stade Louis II this week, rejecting a concrete contract offer from the Premier League club.
Marseille-born talent turning heads
Born in Marseille, Gomes joined Monaco’s academy back in 2023 after leaving local side SC Air Bel. He has since progressed rapidly through the club’s youth ranks, featuring for the Groupe Élite this season after a productive spell with the U19s.
Comfortable at both centre-back and right-back, the versatile teenager has also represented France at Under-18 level, further boosting his growing reputation among Europe’s top clubs. His pre-season form has been eye-catching too, with a goal and an assist coming in friendlies against Juventus and Club Brugge respectively.
Why Monaco won out
Chelsea’s interest is hardly surprising given their long-standing policy of hoovering up promising teenage talent from across the continent. However, Gomes clearly feels his development is better served on the Rock for now.
It’s a sensible call, in truth. Monaco have an excellent track record of blooding academy graduates into senior football, and a queue of established options at Chelsea could easily have stalled his progress. There may also be a lingering edge to this one — relations between the two clubs were left strained after the collapsed deadline-day move for Lamine Camara, so this snub might sting a little extra at Stamford Bridge.
For Monaco, retaining Gomes is a real coup. If he continues on this trajectory, a first-team debut before the end of the season wouldn’t be a shock at all.
