Ecuadorian football has been going through a bit of a glow up over the past few years, especially when it comes to youngsters.
Independiente Del Valle has one of the best academies in South America, and their youth team is very successful.
The Ecuador U20 national team will play in the World Cup in two weeks time; the U17 national team have also booked their place in the U17 World Cup, and were just 15 minutes away from a historic continental title.
And now Ecuador has a new wonder kid whose name everyone should become familiar with, Kendry Paez.
A central or attacking midfielder that focuses his play down the middle or on the right, he has excellent vision and near perfect technique and dribbling skills.
This makes him a nightmare for defenders, and his long distance shot is good too.
Ray Kendry Páez Andrade was born on 4 May 2007 in Guayaquil, Ecuador's second-largest city.
He started playing football at Alfaro Moreno Academy when he was five, and moved to Barcelona SC, and later Emelec to find a place for himself.
Paez wasn't good enough for these two major clubs, so he eventually signed with Club Sport Patria from the second tier, another club from Guayaquil.
He started as a striker but later dropped further down the pitch, playing as a central or attacking midfielder.
"At Barcelona and Emelec I played just to play, at Patria I played in order to find my position on the pitch", he said.
His performances with Patria made him stand out to Independiente Del Valle's scouting staff, the club that boasts the best football academy in the country.
🇪🇨 15-year-old, Kendry Paez is unbellievable 😱pic.twitter.com/47s516DFIb
— BabaGol (@BabaGol_) April 15, 2023
Paez would go on to sign with them, and caught the eye of the senior team coach, Martin Anselmi.
He was also chosen as the best player in the 2022 Next Gen tournament in Salzburg, where other European scouts attended and, before the current season had started, Paez joined up with the senior squad.
Coming on as a second half substitute to make his debut on 25 February against Mushuc Runa, the young midfielder would score his first professional goal.
Del Valle won 3-1, and Paez became the youngest player to have ever played in the first division.
The U17 South American championship ended three weeks ago, and it was another opportunity for Paez to show his ability.
Ecuador hosted the tournament and played wonderfully.
They were 15 minutes away from a historic title, but an equalizer from Venezuela ended the dream.
Paez was Ecuador's best player, and one of the tournament’s best overall - involved in eight goals, scoring twice and assisting six, the most in the tournament.
Kendry Paez will only stay in Ecuador for a short time, that is almost certain.
Due to his age, he cannot go abroad just yet, but Independiente have already rejected an offer from Manchester United, while Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen are rumoured to be interested too.
Reports from journalist Fabrizio Romano indicate that Chelsea have sealed the deal, and Paez will join the Blues when he turns 18.
The fee is unknown, and there has been no official confirmation of the deal, but it appears that Kendry will be sold for a historic transfer fee in Ecuador – more than the €4.5M Brighton paid for Moises Caicedo.
Independiente director: “Today, I can say that Kendry Páez will be Chelsea player in 2025”. 🔵🇪🇨 #CFC
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 18, 2023
“We received bids from Man United and Borussia Dortmund but Chelsea showed super interest”, told @ElCanalDFutbol.
Kendry Páez deal, done and sealed as reported weeks ago. pic.twitter.com/o2PqMtj3N1
Meanwhile the wonder kid is being used as a regular part of Del Valle's rotation, and last week he made his Copa Libertadores debut, when he came on as a sub in the second half.
At his young age, however, to fully make the most of his talent he still must gain weight and build his body to become more physical in his game.
Kendry was invited to La Tri’s squad for the FIFA U20 World Cup in Argentina as well, so we may have a chance to watch him in action.
And who knows, he is already being marked as a prospect to break Felipe Caicedo's record as the youngest player to ever debut with the senior team.
With him and with Moises Caicedo, La Tri’s future looks very bright.
Edited by Alex Smith
