Chelsea completed another staggering spending spree by its new American ownership — more than $350 million this time — by signing Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez for a British-record fee on the final day of the January transfer window on Tuesday.
A day of negotiations between Benfica and Chelsea’s co-owners ended with the Premier League club agreeing to pay the release clause of 106.7 million pounds ($131.4 million) in the 22-year-old World Cup winner’s contract.
The Portuguese club announced the transfer in a statement early Wednesday
The fee eclipsed the 100 million pounds (then $139 million) Manchester City paid Aston Villa for England international Jack Grealish in 2021.
Chelsea has spent more this month than every club in the top leagues in Spain, Italy, Germany and France combined. And following a big outlay in Europe’s summer transfer window, Chelsea has splashed out around $630 million in the first two windows overseen by the new ownership — fronted by Todd Boehly — since the purchase of the club for $2.5 billion in May.
How Chelsea Masterminded huge outlay
Chelsea signed eight players in January and handed most of them long contracts — as much as 8 1/2 years for Fernandez, for example — to allow the club to spread the cost of the signings over the length of the deals and comply with financial fair-play regulations.
Fernandez only joined Benfica from Argentine club River Plate in August, for a reported fee of around $10 million, but his profile was boosted by his performances in the World Cup after breaking into Argentina’s team in the group stage and starting every game through to the final.
He was voted as the best young player at the tournament.
Chelsea will hope its latest spending spree — which includes bringing in Ukraine winger Mykhailo Mudryk in a deal worth around $108 million and France centre-back Benoît Badiashile for $40 million — helps the team climb the Premier League standings in a late attempt to qualify for the Champions League. The team is in 10th place, 10 points off the top four.
The final day of the window was another busy one for Chelsea, which also sold midfielder Jorginho to Premier League leader Arsenal while its winger, Hakim Ziyech, held talks with Paris Saint-Germain about a loan move without a deal being announced amid reports of issues with the paperwork.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - Associated Press)
