Chelsea youngster to avoid punishment after caught in strip clup
Chelsea wonderkid Kendry Paez is likely avoid serious punishment after being pictured in a New York strip club with his Ecuador team-mates before their match against Italy.
The 16-year-old, who joined Chelsea for £17.27million last summer, was filmed with 23-year-old Gonzalo Plata and 32-year-old Robert Arboleda in a strip club the night before Ecuador lost to 2-0 to Italy in the States last Sunday.
The incident has sparked anger in Ecuador but Chelsea will leave disciplinary matters in the hands of the Ecuador Football Federation and Independiente del Valle, the club where he will stay until he is allowed to move to London after he turns 18.
Paez is likely to be reminded of his responsibilities, but his older team-mates face more severe punishments.
Reports in Ecuador suggest the more experienced members of the squad could be dropped from the national team, and that Paez and other younger squad members have been deemed to have been led astray.
A statement from the Ecuadorian Football Federation said: “The official delegation had free time on Friday, March 22, from 2:00pm to 8:30pm, a schedule that was fully complied with.
“Images of events contrary to the values and principles that we defend and promote as an institution have been disseminated, which will be the subject of analysis for future calls.
“We reiterate our commitment to Ecuadorian soccer.”
Paez entered the strip club despite being under the legal age of 21 in New York.
There remains excitement about his arrival at Chelsea. He is regarded as one of the top young prospects in the world and he will join Chelsea on in 2025.
Paez has visited London on multiple occasions and last trained with Mauricio Pochettino’s first-team squad in December, when the South American season ended.
