Caleb Wiley is close to completing a loan move to Watford until the end of the season, football.london understands.

The 20-year-old left-back has spent the season on loan at Strasbourg, the BlueCo-owned French club, and has played seven times in all competitions. Wiley has been unavailable for selection in the past two months with a dislocated shoulder. The American missed six games before that due to a knee problem he suffered back in September.

It has not been an ideal loan for Wiley, who is now set to join Championship club Watford until the end of the season. The Hornets sit in ninth-place in the second-tier of English football with manager Tom Cleverley using a three-back formation for the majority of the season at Vicarage Road, meaning there could be a left wing-back role for Wiley to occupy when the transfer is confirmed.

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With Wiley's loan at Strasbourg terminated, this opens up another spot for Chelsea to send someone else to the Stade de la Meinau. FIFA rules state that no more than three players are allowed to be loaned from one club to another at a time.

FIFA rules read: "A club may have a maximum of three professionals loaned out to a specific club at any given time during a season; a club may have a maximum of three professionals loaned in from a specific club at any given time during a season."

As reported earlier in the month, Strasbourg is an option for Carney Chukwuemeka, who has been told he can leave Stamford Bridge this month. There were rumours of a permanent departure for the 21-year-old midfielder but football.london understands Chelsea would not allow him to leave for any figure less than the £40million release clause inserted in his contract.

Chukwuemeka is contracted at Chelsea for another three-and-a-half years but the England Under-20 international has seen minutes hard to come by this season. Yet to appear in the Premier League, the former Aston Villa midfielder, who was signed for £20million in the summer of 2022, has featured just five times in all competitions.