Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez set for joint British record £125m Manchester City move
The Argentina international told Chelsea he wanted to leave three months ago
Manchester City have agreed to sign Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea for a joint British record fee of £125 million.
It comes more than three months after the Argentina international first told Chelsea he wanted to leave and more than two weeks after the expiry of a deadline imposed by the club for bids.
Nevertheless, it is understood the club were always open to doing a deal beyond the August 13 cut-off, provided City’s offer reflected rising summer market valuations after a number of deals in the Premier League and in Europe that were struck for more than £100m.
The size of the fee matches that paid by Liverpool to Newcastle for Alexander Isak a year ago.
The move will reunite the 25-year-old with City boss Enzo Maresca, with whom he worked when the Italian was in charge at Stamford Bridge. The pair enjoyed a close relationship and Fernandez has been eager to work under Maresca again.
Formal contact was made by City over a deal on Monday evening and things moved quickly on deadline day.
Fernandez was left out of the last two matchday squads by Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso, who said he only wanted players who had a “desire to play” for the club.
Fernandez, who has now been given permission to speak to City and finalise the move, has spent three-and-a-half years at Chelsea after signing from Benfica for a then-British-record £107m.