Chelsea has signed midfielder Enzo Fernandez from Benfica for a British-record £106.8m.
The club confirmed this in a video on Twitter in which they teased the unveiling of Fernandez sometime later today, February 1, 2023.
It contained a ticking clock, his name above the Chelsea badge, fans at Stamford Bridge, and ended with a picture of the player himself.
Chelsea’s pursuit of Fernandez headed into the last minutes of the transfer window as both clubs spent Tuesday locked in talks to try and get the move wrapped up.
The club made preparations for his medical in Portugal and organised a private jet for him to board on Wednesday to fly to England.
At one point, it looked as though Chelsea would fail to get the deal for the 22-year-old over the line – but both parties finally made a breakthrough just minutes before the 11 pm deadline.
Benfica confirmed the move in a statement in the early hours of Wednesday morning after the clubs completed the necessary paperwork prior to the deadline. The Portuguese club also removed Fernandez from their list of players on the club website.
The Blues teased an announcement by changing their Twitter bio to an Argentina flag followed by a trophy emoji.
Then on Wednesday morning the BluwesChelsea’s co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali – who also sanctioned Jorginho’s move to Arsenal on Tuesday – led negotiations for the World Cup winner with Benfica from London.
The Argentine’s deal surpasses the £100m Manchester City paid for Jack Grealish from Aston Villa 18 months ago.
The 22-year-old, who only joined Benfica last summer for around £10m, has signed an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge to keep him at the club until the summer of 2031.
The Premier League’s record buys
- Enzo Fernandez – Benfica to Chelsea, January 2023 – £106.8m
- Jack Grealish – Aston Villa to Manchester City, summer 2021 – £100m
- Romelu Lukaku – Inter Milan to Chelsea, summer 2021 – £97.5m
- Romelu Lukaku – Everton to Manchester United, summer 2017 – £90m
- Paul Pogba – Juventus to Manchester United, summer 2016 – £89m
- Mykhailo Mudryk – Shakhtar Donetsk to Chelsea, January 2022 – £88.5m
Meanwhile, Chelsea has splashed over £323m in this January transfer window after completing a British record deal for Benfica’s Enzo Fernandez – so how are they able to spend such huge sums and stay within Financial Fair Play rules?
The UEFA FFP regulations are designed to limit excessive spending and there are also Premier League rules which put a cap on the losses a club can suffer over a three-year period. Large fines or points deductions can be dished out as punishment to clubs that don’t adhere to the rules.
But with the Blues agreeing to a £106.8m transfer for Fernandez, new Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly will have overseen a spend £600m since the takeover in May 2022 – and they appear to have stayed within the guidelines.