Yisa Alao: Why Chelsea fought off transfer competition from Man Utd & Liverpool to land Sheffield Wednesday's marauding teenage full-back

Yorkshire born and raised, Alao - who has Nigerian heritage - joined Wednesday's Under-7s at a young age, and he would make swift progress through the ranks while often punching above his weight as he mixed it with the big boys in higher age grades.

By the 2024-25 season, the left-sided defender was routinely turning out for the U18s despite still being just 16 years of age, helping the club to a second-placed finish in the U18 Professional Development League North. Alao was rewarded with a scholarship deal in May 2025, technically paving the way for his continuation in the U18s - but instead he has played with the U21s and regularly formed part of the first-team squad at Hillsborough in 2025-26, such is his ability.

A senior debut would soon follow, as newly-installed head coach Henrik Pedersen threw the teenager into Carabao Cup first-round action away at Bolton Wanderers in August. Alao made a nine-minute cameo off the bench before his side triumphed on penalties. However, it was during his home bow against Grimsby Town in the third round that he really caught the eye.

Introduced as a first-half substitute following an injury to Olaf Kobacki, the then-16-year-old delivered the kind of marauding display at left wing-back that showcased all of his best attributes, bombing forward but never shirking his defensive responsibilities, even winning five aerial duels.

"As soon as he came on they tried to bring extra people to his side," Pedersen told The Star after what was ultimately a 1-0 defeat. "But he grew through the battle and wow. One of the important skills you need to have as a young player is to adapt; to adapt to the level, to new players and to everything. It was really, really good. He has had a really good development, he has played 18s and 21 and then for us at Bolton. He's a great young player, wow."

"It was unexpected, I didn't think I would come on but you've got to be ready," Alao himself said. "It was a difficult one to come into as a young lad, but I think the older players get around you, and the manager especially helps you confidence-wise to come on and play without fear. We play on the front foot, and he [Pedersen] just wants me to compete and do my part.

"It's been a great experience, it's what you dream of really. It's brilliant to be around the first team and they’re really good at nurturing you as a young player. It’s been really good for my development."

Pedersen did warn, though, that the Owls would need to take a cautious approach with Alao's development in the notoriously rigorous English second tier. "We have to be very careful with him," the coach added. "Just to have a normal training week for at a Championship level is very tough for him. That's the big challenge for us."

Indeed, despite becoming a regular feature of Wednesday's matchday squads in the league, it wouldn't be until after his 17th birthday in that Alao would make his Championship debut, playing a single minute off the bench against Derby County in December 2025.

His chances weren't helped by the the fact that the early days of his senior career were unfolding against the backdrop of Wednesday's dire financial situation under now-former owner Dejphon Chansiri. Amid repeated losses and cashflow problems that resulted in the failure to pay both players and HMRC, the club went into administration in October 2025 - triggering an immediate 12-point deduction as Wednesday dropped to the bottom of the Championship. That was topped up to 18 points in December due to payment regulation breaches, leaving the Owls on -10 points, 27 from safety, and doomed for relegation to League One.

Perhaps not coincidentally, it was around that time that Premier League interest in Alao was first reported, with the player still not tied to a professional contract at that stage despite his eligibility as a 17-year-old and Pedersen's assertion that his boyhood side had to do "everything" to keep him.

On the pitch, the youngster played an hour of the FA Cup third-round defeat to Premier League side Brentford earlier in January before being handed a full Championship debut in the home loss to Portsmouth. Meanwhile, that transfer speculation snowballed with the winter transfer open as northern powerhouses United and Liverpool were both touted as destinations. But it is Chelsea who have won the battle for his signature after Alao rejected professional terms at Hillsborough.

A statement from Wednesday's administrators upon the completion of the deal read: "Our responsibility is to act in the best long-term interests of Sheffield Wednesday and its creditors. This transfer balances immediate value for the club with protection for the future, should Yisa's career develop as we all hope."

Although the sample size of first-team action is obviously small (a meagre 186 senior minutes), when you see Alao in action you are immediately struck by his fearlessness for his age; he doesn't shy away from physical battles, and he won't hoof the ball up the pitch, instead backing his own dribbling ability and passing to progress it up the pitch.

It's interesting that he mentioned front-footedness in his praise of Pedersen, too, as the teenager often seems to be one step ahead of his opponent, reading the game astutely to be in position to make an interception or being prepared to step into midfield and take on his man with the ball at his feet. A thoroughly modern full-back in that sense, it's easy to see why the Premier League's elite were after him.

Despite his tender years, Alao already stands at 6'1" and still has plenty of growing to do, meaning he fits the mould of the taller, more athletic, more technical wide defenders that are becoming increasingly prevalent in the modern game.

Of course, that kind of fearlessness and the determination to bomb up and down the left flank can occasionally lead to a little bit of naivety. Alao has been found wanting positionally in certain instances, while that front-footedness sometimes strays into overzealousness in the challenge, which can leave him exposed.

The teenager's lack of experience overall will obviously count against him in terms of getting more first-team opportunities at a club the size of Chelsea. He has admitted himself that the step up from the Wednesday academy to Championship level was significant, and now he must prepare himself for another significant leap up to the Premier League, hopefully in the not-too-distant future.

"It’s been a massive change, but you have to step up and take your chance when it comes your way," Alao said in September. "I've had to be prepared. It’s a huge difference from playing in the academy, it's a lot more fast-paced. I’ve just got to keep striving and trying to improve myself, it’s been a great opportunity and hopefully there is more to come."

Arguably the archetype for the modern full-back, Nico O'Reilly's rise at Manchester City has been meteoric. Nominally a midfielder, master tactician Pep Guardiola has converted him into a marauding left-back who is strong defensively, comfortable with the ball at his feet and more than capable when inverting in the middle of the park.

Guardiola has been one of the pioneers of deploying a more physically imposing player at full-back, having fielded centre-back Josko Gvardiol there for a long period before O'Reilly's breakthrough. O'Reilly is the next iteration, as someone who can genuinely influence the game at both ends of the pitch. Still just 20, the Englishman has now made the position his own, and Chelsea may well be envisioning a similar pathway for Alao.

Who knows, the two youngsters could well be competing for the left-back spot in the Three Lions' XI in the future?...

Given Chelsea's infamous model of buying high-potential young players, developing them and selling them for a profit under current owners BlueCo, perhaps even without them ever making an appearance for the club, it's difficult to predict exactly how Alao's career with the Blues might unfold.

In the immediate term it would be logical for him to form part of the club's youth setup, either with the U18s or U21s. If he was going to be loaned to a lower-league club it surely would have made more sense for him to have stayed at Wednesday for the remainder of the campaign before joining up with his new side in the summer.

Alao might get senior minutes in pre-season and the cup competitions could offer an opportunity in 2026-27, with new head coach Liam Rosenior known for his use of young players, but the likelihood is that he either continues in the academy ranks or is loaned out, either to the Championship or perhaps to the Blues' sister club, Strasbourg.

For the time being, the first team seems distant, with Marc Cucurella a key player at left-back and 2025 summer signing Jorrel Hato viewed as an elite prospect. That said, there could be an opportunity there is either leaves of the Dutchman fails to deliver on his promise.