As Fulham look to tie Fabio Carvalho down to a new contract while warding off interest from Leeds United, two words should suffice – Ryan Sessegnon.
Three years ago, one of the most coveted teenagers in British football was making space on his mantelpiece for the Championship’s young player of the year award, a gong richly deserved after he contributed 16 goals and eight assists during Fulham’s promotion-winning campaign.
Flash forward to 2021 and Sessegnon was spotted plying his trade for Tottenham U23s in a pre-season friendly with Chelsea.
Yes, it may have been part of Sessegnon’s recovery from a niggling knee problem but, even when the former England youth star does return to full fitness, he’ll have one heck of a task trying to dislodge Sergio Reguilon and Ben Davies from Spurs’ first team.
24 months after completing his £25 million move to the London giants, Sessegnon has started just four Premier League games.
How about another cautionary tale?
Patrick Roberts, an £11 million signing for Manchester City in 2015 who, after loan spells at six different clubs, now finds himself in limbo at the age of 24, a million miles from Pep Guardiola’s plans and struggling to drum up interest from elsewhere.
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Should Fabio Carvalho stick with Fulham or move to Leeds or West Ham?
Now, that’s not to say Carvalho would suffer the same fate.
The Lisbon-born 18-year-old is a huge talent and Leeds, who have expressed an interest alongside top-flight rivals West Ham, pride themselves on talent development (Daily Mail).
Then again, we said something similar about Sessegnon and Spurs not so long ago.
According to The Athletic, contract talks between Fulham and Carvalho are heading in the right direction. Music to the ears of everyone in the white corner of west London.
The teenager has started all three of Fulham’s Championship games under compatriot Marco Silva this season, scoring one and setting up the other during a mesmeric display at Millwall in midweek. Carvalho sliced through Gary Rowett’s side like a katana blade through Play-Doh.
And, as Sessegnon and Roberts will tell you, the grass isn’t necessarily greener elsewhere. A new contract not only guarantees Carvalho first team football, it also reduces the risk of another Sessegnon situation.
Here’s what some Fulham fans on Twitter had to say about the situation:
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