Chelsea have confirmed the signing of centre-back Wesley Fofana from Leicester City.
The Blues wanted three new centre-backs this summer to cope with the departures of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, striking deals to sign Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella earlier in the window.
After losing out on Jules Kounde and Matthijs de Ligt to Barcelona and Bayern Munich respectively, Chelsea set their sights on Fofana. Three bids were knocked back but a fourth, which 90min understands is worth £70m plus £10m in add-ons, was enough to convince Leicester to sell.
After passing a medical, Fofana has now signed a seven-year contract to become the final addition to Thomas Tuchel’s defence this summer.
“The two last days have been really big days for me and I’m very happy. I trained this morning with the team and it’s a dream for me. I’m very excited to start playing games for the fans and the club,” Fofana said.
“I’m here win trophies – the Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup, everything. I came here to win and the club is built to win trophies so I’m here to continue that.”
Scott Saunders, Graeme Bailey & Toby Cudworth bring you Talking Transfers, discussing Lucas Paqueta’s move to West Ham, Chelsea’s plans to sign Anthony Gordon, Wesley Fofana and Arsen Zakharyan and the latest from Old Trafford. Available on all audio platforms and the 90min YouTube channel.
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Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly said: “Wesley is a hugely promising defender who has already proven his quality in the Premier League at a young age. We are delighted we were able to bring one of Europe’s most exciting talents to Chelsea and further strengthen that area of our squad, both for this season and many more to come.”
Fofana, who could become the second-most expensive defender in history if all add-ons are met, may not be the final signing Chelsea make this summer.
Boehly is working on the signing of Barcelona striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and talks are also on with Crystal Palace over Ivorian forward Wilfried Zaha, while there are also expected to be plenty of departures from Stamford Bridge before the transfer window closes.
The Blues are also speaking with RB Leipzig about another defender, Josko Gvardiol, who could join in the summer of 2023 for a fee of £77m.
