Who is Chelsea and Manchester City target Nelson Semedo?

The 2015-16 season for Chelsea hasn't been very good, but as far as the tabloids throughout Europe are concerned, this is an open invitation to link the Blues to anyone with a pulse. According to Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, Chelsea along with Manchester City, Arsenal and Inter Milan have been monitoring Benfica's young right-back Nélson Semedo.

The 22-year-old player started his footballing career at lower-division club Sintrense, starting in their youth ranks and working his way up to become a pro at the age of 17. In 2012 he completed his transfer to Benfica, being sent on a season-long loan right after his purchase to third-division team Fátima and returning to Benfica to play in their B-team, where he amassed 59 appearances over two seasons.

Semedo is a right-back by trade, although he certainly has the tools to play further up the pitch. Even though he's a defender, he's quite attack-minded, always looking for space to make runs on the right flank to support the attack with crosses on the edge of the box. Semedo is also very fast, capable of out-running most opponents if he's given freedom to do so.

But as always, a young player also has his share of red flags. Semedo has a good work rate, and will often close down opponents eagerly in either half of the pitch, but that sometimes leads him to become exposed and to overcommit when trying to correct positional mistakes.  He also likes to cut inside near the box, which in Benfica's B-team worked marvelously for him as he could outpower his opponents and leave his marking duties astray, but he probably wouldn't have the same kind of freedom in the Premier League.

At the moment, Semedo is recovering from surgery on his right knee which took place in October after he returned from games against Denmark and Serbia for the Portuguese national team. Until then, he had 9 starts for Benfica in all competitions.

Nélsinho's price tag is reportedly €45 million (£32.4 million in current exchange rates), which isn't news given the outrageous release clauses handed to promising youngsters in Portugal and their clubs' policy of enforcing them when it comes to transfers. Either way, Semedo doesn't look ready to take over the Premier League as a starting right-back - and he would be a rather expensive project to invest money on the wings after Baba Rahman.