Endrick, the Brazilian talent who is joining Real Madrid this summer for a reported €60m fee, confirmed that Chelsea were trying to sign him back in 2022.
"At one point, there was a lot of talk about Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe for Madrid and that was when there was strong interest from Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain," the 17-year-old told The Athletic.
"Of course, they are big and important teams. I am very interested in them and they would be excellent options.
"I was attracted by the Premier League, the city of London and the fact that English is the economically dominant language in the world. And obviously, Chelsea is a strong brand that has won two Champions Leagues.
"I was told that it rains a lot in London, but that wouldn't be a problem because, as my father used to say, I always liked playing in the rain," Endrick added. "But I always made it clear to my agent that my dream was Real Madrid.
"Whenever there are high-level players within the team, the team will develop better, and consequently, it will be able to win in attitude, right? So whatever is best for Real Madrid and the entire team, let it be done.
"I just want to be happy playing my football like I always wanted. Obviously, if I can play with Vinicius, Rodrygo or Kylian it will be something very good, but Florentino [Perez] and all the people around him know what to do which will be better for the club."
With Chelsea focusing on the best young talent all over the world, it was no surprise that they were in the race for Endrick who has the potential to be one of the best forwards of his generation.
At the same time, they have a reason to believe that they have already signed another player in this category: Kendry Paez is a year younger than Endrick and will join Chelsea in 2025.
