Chelsea have completed the signing of Enzo Fernandez for a British-record fee of €121m (£106.3m) after agreeing a deal with Benfica late on deadline day.
The Argentina international, who was named the World Cup’s best young player in Qatar last year, has signed an eight-and-a-half-year contract that will keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2031.
Chelsea were linked with Enzo throughout the January transfer window, but appeared to have missed out when Benfica refused to sell earlier this month, despite Fernandez stating his desire to move.
The two parties did, however, finally agree on a payment structure late on deadline day after club representatives travelled to Portugal to resurrect the deal towards the close of the window.
The Blues still required a deal sheet and an extension to complete the transfer, but Benfica have now confirmed the sale.
Chelsea will pay the record fee of more than £106m in six instalments, the first of which will be a lump sum of €34m (£29.9m).
Enzo will take a flight to London on Wednesday to meet his new teammates. He might make his club debut against Fulham on Friday in the West London derby.
Enzo Fernández to Chelsea… HERE WE GO! Agreement reached right now between Chelsea & Benfica 🚨🔵🇦🇷 #CFC #DeadlineDay
Important: clubs running to get the documents signed before end of the window, it’s finally agreed.
Boarding set to be completed — London ✈️ @TurkishAirlines pic.twitter.com/YGwY4QGseQ
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 31, 2023
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Benfica were desperate to keep the midfielder at the Estadio da Luz until the end of the season, but Enzo was eager to leave and pushed for a move once Chelsea rekindled their interest.
The 22-year-old has now surpassed Manchester City’s Jack Grealish as the most expensive player in British football history.
It also adds to Chelsea’s record spending since being taken over by a consortium led by Todd Boehly, with the Blues spending more than £600m on new players in the last two transfer windows.
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