Chelsea Midfielder Receives Stark Warning About Off-Field Conduct Before Critical World Cup Showdown

AT a World Cup where wonderkids are already making their mark, Kendry Paez is still in his starting blocks.

At 19, the much-hyped starlet is older than , Ayyoub Bouaddi and Ibrahim Mbaye, who have all been strutting their stuff on football’s biggest stage.

Kendry Paez is yet to play a single minute at the 2026 World Cup Credit: Alamy Paez joined Chelsea when he turned 18 but has not yet been integrated into the first team Credit: Getty

But Thursday’s crunch clash with could be Ecuador’s last at the tournament, and Paez is yet to see a single minute of World Cup action under boss Sebastian Beccacece.

This is the player who was long hailed as the future of a La Tri team which includes superstars like Moises Caicedo, Piero Hincapie and Willian Pacho.

Paez has been part of Ecuador’s senior set-up since not long after his 16th birthday, at which point the path to stardom was neatly laid out in front of him.

Chelsea pre-agreed a £17.2million deal for when he turned 18, he was left to continue developing in , and a bumper contract was on the horizon – it was all going according to plan.

But there have been hiccups during the transition from top prospect to first-team star.

A loan to Strasbourg was cut short after six uninspiring months, and there have been murmurings about attitude issues since he was sent on loan to .

Miguel Angel Ramirez, who was the academy director when Paez was wowing scouts at boyhood club Independiente del Valle, has no concerns about his talent.

The Spaniard even used to call Paez ‘Dima’ because the way he played reminded him of the great World Cup winner .

Miguel Angel Ramirez believes Paez needs to sort out his priorities off the pitch Credit: Getty Ecuador have disappointed with a loss and a draw in their first two group games Credit: Getty

But he believes an off-the-pitch transformation may be required to get him back on track.

Ramirez told SunSport: “Whether he becomes a top player is up to him and his response to this situation – above all, off the pitch.

“Maybe his development was too fast and the expectations too high, too early. It is not easy to deal with that.

“Now all the pressure and expectations are on him, and I don’t know if he has the tools to respond to those expectations already.

“It is completely up to him if he is able to respond because he has the talent. He is so good. But I don’t know if he is able to pay the price as others are doing off the pitch.”

Ecuador cruised through South American World Cup qualifying but have struggled since landing at the tournament proper, losing in the last minute to and then drawing 0-0 with minnows .

So they need something against World Cup heavyweights Germany, who have won two out of two in Group E.

Ecuador fans will hope the boiling East Coast conditions might work in favour of their nation, whose name literally translates to ‘Equator’.

But Ramirez suspects those theories might be overblown for a squad based all around the world.

He added: “They come from hot places and maybe they are used to it, but now some of them play in London and Paris. No altitude, no heat.

“They are adapted to European conditions so it will be tough for them.

“Even if they know the feeling, they need to be adapted and they don’t play in those conditions every week.”