The 19-year-old has completed a move to Stamford Bridge after emerging as one of the top talents in MLS

The city of Atlanta is set to become the center of American soccer, if it isn't already. The local MLS club, Atlanta United, routinely boasts one of the largest crowds in the world. Mercedez-Benz Stadium recently hosted two Copa America matches, including the opening game featuring Lionel Messi's Argentina. And, in the coming years, U.S. Soccer will establish its home base in the city with a new training complex.

Just a few short years ago, that was all unfathomable. At that time, there was no massive stadium, no big crowds, no Atlanta United. There was no soccer culture in the city, just hope. And, it was at that time, that an 11-year-old Caleb Wiley joined up with Atlanta United's academy ahead of the team's inaugural season.

Now 19, Wiley is leaving his home town as the club's first true homegrown star. Having gone from the academy to the reserves and, now, all the way to the first team, he's a true local success story. Atlanta United has already produced one Premier League star in Miguel Almiron but, having shown his enormous potential in MLS, Wiley is hoping that he too can make a name for himself in the world's biggest league with one of Europe' biggest clubs.

He'll be leaving one massive city for another, swapping Atlanta for London and his hometown's red and black for the famous Chelsea blue. By signing Wiley, Chelsea are betting on his future and, based on what we've seen, it's not a bad bet to make.

But who is Wiley and why have Chelsea spent £8.5 million ($10.9m) to sign him?GOAL has you covered with all you need to know about the American teenager…

GettyWhere it all began

During Wiley's early years, soccer was only one of several sports he tried out. That makes sense, particularly in Atlanta, a city that has produced plenty of NFL, NBA and MLB stars. He fell into soccer, and he fell into it at the right time, too, as a new MLS team was coming to town.

Wiley actually joined Atlanta United's academy before the team took the field, which gave him a first-hand look at the club's incredible rise. On December 8, 2018, he was there when the team won MLS Cup in their home stadium, which certainly served as a defining moment for the then-14-year-old.

“I got to be on the field and experience that feeling of winning,” he told . “I wasn’t a player at the time, so I didn’t know how it felt to actually win it. But after seeing that happen, it was like, 'Wow!'. I wanted to be in their shoes, I wanted to be doing that, playing in front of 70,000-plus fans.”

Wiley would work his way towards getting the chance, and he made his professional debut with Atlanta United 2 in 2020 before, in January 2022, he officially signed his homegrown contract with his boyhood club. From that point forward, the only way was only up.

AdvertisementGettyThe big break

It didn't take long for Wiley to get going with the Atlanta first team. He made his debut in February 2020, and marked it with a goal in what ended up as a 3-1 win over Sporting KC. By the end of the season, he'd made 26 league appearances, jumping right into life in MLS.

The 2023 campaign, though, was his real breakout, and it started early. In just the third week of the season, Wiley scored two goals and provided an assist in a win over Charlotte FC, becoming the fifth-youngest player in MLS history to contribute to three goals in a single season. That put the rest of MLS on notice: Wiley had arrived.

“Everything has happened so quick,” Wiley told earlier this year. “Thankfully, I've had mentors and I've had teammates, I've had coaches, I've obviously had family that has always been by my side. But I think the biggest one is just having my teammates, especially the older guys who've kind of gone through it. They're more experienced, so they know what they're doing. And so to have them kind of give me advice, kind of talk to me, has been very helpful.

“I mean, there's a lot of pressure, especially when I first started out, not used to playing in front of 70,000-plus fans. So it was something that I had to adapt to. I think as games went on, I started getting more confident in myself, I started growing into my body as a player and as a person. And then came the second year and I had an idea of what the league was about. I had an idea of what other players, how they were playing. I physically got stronger, mentally got stronger.”

Getty ImagesHow it's going

Wiley never lost his spot in the Atlanta United XI, starting 28 times throughout the 2023 season. He finished with four goals and four assists from the left-back position. So far, to start 2024, he's started 21 games for Atlanta, contributing a goal and an assist. The club, though, has struggled to live up to expectations as a whole.

Wiley, on the other hand, has seen his stock soar. In 2023, he made his U.S. men's national team debut in a 1-1 draw with Mexico before going on to star at the Under-20 World Cup. He then went on to earn a second USMNT cap during the 2024 January camp against Slovenia.

This summer, the focus is on the U-23s as Wiley is set to be a key player for the U.S. at the Olympics in Paris later this month.

GettyBiggest strengths

The first thing that you notice about Wiley is that he always seems to be playing the game on fast-forward. Everything is done with speed, and he never slows down.

Blessed with both elite pace and size, Wiley is a menace on that left-hand side. He has the ability to run past just about everybody but, more importantly, he also has the ability to do it over and over again. Wiley isn't just one of the best young players in the world when it comes to pure pace, but also the amount of ground covered at full speed.

That acceleration, of course, makes him hard to defend, as does his dribbling. Wiley has gotten more comfortable on the ball and has improved his crossing.

Defensively, he's also improved plenty. He can play as a left-back, wing-back or as a wide forward, with his versatility making him an asset to whatever team he's on.