Kendry Paez's Journey: From Record Breaker to Chelsea Academy
Kendry Paez finally pulled on a Chelsea shirt at the weekend. Not under the lights at Stamford Bridge, not in front of a global audience, but as a 12th‑minute substitute for Cobham Next Gen in a 4-1 win away at Arsenal’s Under-21s.
Three years after Chelsea agreed a £17.27m deal with Independiente del Valle for a 16-year-old phenomenon, the Ecuadorian playmaker’s first real steps in blue came on a quiet academy pitch.
This is not how the script was supposed to read.
From record breaker to reality check
Paez arrived in Europe as one of the most hyped teenagers on the continent. He tore up records in Ecuador: the youngest debutant and goalscorer in the country’s top flight at 15, then a Copa Libertadores appearance in the same season.
Internationally, he moved just as fast. At 16 years and 131 days, he became the second-youngest South American ever to feature in a World Cup qualifier, behind Diego Maradona. A month later he went one better, becoming the youngest South American to score in a World Cup qualifier, away to Bolivia in a 2-1 win.
By the time Chelsea struck their deal in 2023, Paez already had 18 caps and two goals for Ecuador. The club thought they were buying the next great South American creator, a player to headline a new era alongside fellow Ecuadorian Moises Caicedo and Brazilian prodigy Estevao Willian.
Chelsea brought him into the fold early. Before he was even eligible to join officially at 18, Paez trained regularly with the first team. The club also stepped in off the pitch, providing security for him, his family and Caicedo’s family when violence erupted in Ecuador in early 2024.
Then came the first cracks. A few months later, Paez was filmed in a New York strip club while on international duty. The footage travelled quickly. So did the questions.
Loans, criticism and a stalled rise
Chelsea’s ownership group had a pathway in mind: Strasbourg first, then the Premier League. Initially, it looked smart. Paez joined the French club on loan and won Ligue 1’s Young Player of the Month for September. His talent flickered into view.
The glow faded. Liam Rosenior, Strasbourg’s then-manager, went public with his frustration.
“We expect more, clearly,” he said. “I’m tired of using the excuse of the player’s youth.”
One goal in 21 appearances told its own story. Despite the multi-club links, Strasbourg and Chelsea cut the loan short.
River Plate came next, a two-year loan to one of Argentina’s giants. On paper, a perfect finishing school. In reality, another difficult chapter.
Sources in Argentina questioned his attitude and pointed to a flat display in the Superclasico, a 1-0 defeat to Boca Juniors at the Monumental in April, as a symbol of his struggles. Soon after, club president Stefano Di Carlo named Paez among 15 players training away from the first team.
Others at River felt he deserved more chances, but the numbers were stark: one goal in 14 appearances, 461 minutes in total. The loan ended by mutual consent.
Back in Ecuador, concern grew. The country had built him up as the next great attacking star. Now, they watched his career stall.
Michel Deller, owner of Independiente del Valle, spoke with the care of someone who had seen the whole journey.
“He’s like a son to us. We care about him deeply,” he told Hincha Amarillo. “He’s a good kid who’s had a tough time and has made decisions that have complicated his life.
“We are always hopeful he’ll show his exceptional talent once again but right now, it’s up to him to decide what to do with his life.”
Alonso’s verdict and a quiet restart
When Xabi Alonso arrived at Chelsea, the message was blunt. Paez was “not in my plans.” On the club’s website, he appeared as an academy player.
Chelsea tried to find him a loan in English football, a reset in a new environment. Fifa rules blocked that route. The club had already used all six of their available international loan slots, which also prevented another move abroad.
So the reset had to happen at Cobham.
Paez’s competitive debut for Cobham Next Gen came at Arsenal, where he stepped off the bench in a comfortable 4-1 win. It was a milestone, but a modest one for a player with 27 senior caps and a World Cup appearance already behind him.
A few days earlier, in the EFL Trophy away to Wycombe Wanderers, there had been a glimpse of what he still carries in his left foot.
Chelsea trailed in front of just 778 fans. Paez, playing as a right-sided No 10 in a system mirroring Alonso’s back three, had been on the fringes of the game. He had kept himself to himself before kick-off, joining the warm-up but largely standing apart from the other academy players.
Then, in stoppage time, he bent an outswinging cross from a short corner onto the boot of Harrison Bettoni for a consolation tap-in. Moments later, another delivery caused panic in the Wycombe box as Chelsea chased an equaliser.
It wasn’t enough to save the result. It was enough to remind people why Chelsea paid so much in the first place.
A talent still worth the wait?
For all the noise, Paez is not some raw rookie. He has already played 70 times for Independiente del Valle and has more than 100 senior appearances across club and country. That experience gives him a base, even if the last 18 months have veered off course.
Inside Chelsea, the concern around his behaviour and mentality is not brushed aside, but those close to him feel the narrative has run away. They argue he needs time – to grow, to settle, to be treated as a 19-year-old still learning, not a finished product who has failed.
Back at Cobham, the club see encouraging signs. He is in a stable, elite environment again. Family were in the stands for the Wycombe match. Staff can monitor his training daily, rather than relying on reports from abroad. Scouts from across the English Football League and beyond regularly attend academy fixtures; every good performance now has a direct audience.
The short-term goal is clear. Impress enough between now and January to earn a first loan in English football, or wait for one of Chelsea’s six international loan slots to open up. Either route would give him another shot at senior football, this time with the lessons of Strasbourg and River Plate behind him.
For now, Kendry Paez is an Ecuadorian international playing in front of three-figure crowds on academy pitches, trying to stitch his reputation back together one cross, one cameo at a time.
The question is no longer whether he ever had the talent. It’s whether this detour becomes the making of him, or the moment his story drifts away from what once seemed inevitable.
