Wednesday, February 1, 2023 – 7:57 PM
LONDON, February 1, WAM/ Chelsea Football Club settled the largest and most prominent deal in the current winter transfer market in Europe and signed Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernandez from Benfica, Portugal, for 121 million euros (about 106.8 million pounds).
Benfica revealed the financial details of the deal, and Chelsea made a brief announcement on its website about the player’s transfer to its ranks.
Benfica announced today, Wednesday, the completion of the deal, after the English club agreed to pay the value of the penalty clause included in the player’s contract, which amounts to 120 million euros, before the closing of the winter transfer window this evening.
The Fernandez deal became the highest value among all the deals concluded in the current winter Mercato, and this deal also achieved a new record at the level of English club contracts in general, being the most expensive in history for British football.
The value of the contract with Fernandez exceeded the previous record for the most expensive English club deals in the player transfer market, which was registered in the name of player Jack Grealish since his move to Manchester City in the summer of 2021 from Aston Villa for 100 million pounds sterling.
Enzo Fernandez, 22, shone clearly in the ranks of the Argentine national team during the 2022 World Cup, and contributed to the team winning the world title, as well as winning the best young player award in the tournament.
Reda Abdel Nour / Ahmed Zahran
