Chelsea midfielder Roméo Lavia operates at the level of Real Madrid or Barcelona when fully fit, according to former Belgian international Wesley Sonck.
Sonck, speaking on the program Een-Tweetje, said that he has tracked the young player’s progress for half a decade.
“For me, Roméo Lavia is one of the best midfielders in the world,” Sonck told Een-Tweetje. “I say that already five years. I know him a very long time, already from when he played at Anderlecht. I saw him at the youth of Manchester City and I have experienced him myself for two years. It is unbelievable what he all sees on a pitch.”
Sonck recalled reviewing match footage with Lavia during their time together, analyzing positioning and spatial awareness that often baffled coaching staff. While public discussion frequently focused on teammate Amadou Onana as the designated successor in midfield, Sonck maintained that Lavia possessed a rare blend of defensive ball-winning capability and progressive distribution.
“We could not understand how he saw things,” Sonck told Een-Tweetje. “Everyone was busy about Onana who would become the new man, but I said then already that we had someone walking around who can pick up balls and play forward.”
Sonck also addressed the physical setbacks that have interrupted the midfielder’s development, suggesting that excessive workload at a young age contributed to his previous injuries. Careful management in recent months has allowed the player to find regular form.
“Now it comes out and we see it all,” Sonck told Een-Tweetje. “I think that he has been loaded too much at too young age the past years and now quietly is well managed and completely departed.”
Former Belgian player Tuur Dierckx echoed Sonck’s assessment regarding the scarcity of players possessing Lavia’s specific profile on the international stage.
“It is a joy to watch, not normal,” Sonck told Een-Tweetje regarding the player’s potential at top European clubs. “For me that is really the level of Real Madrid or Barcelona, if he stays fit. Where is his bar? I enjoy it really so hard. How many of his caliber walk around in the world?”
Dierckx answered immediately in the same broadcast: “Not many hé. A piece of five-six, certainly not more. I hope for the Red Devils that he stays fit and that we can enjoy him for a long time. The people around him and himself will certainly know what is needed for that. Playing many matches is not always good, but a young player with many qualities wants and will always do that. If he stays fit, then we are good.”
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