London — Chelsea have completed the signing of France Under-21 international central defender Wesley Fofana from Leicester City, the two clubs announced on Wednesday.
Fofana, 21, has signed a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge, the London outfit confirmed.
The transfer fee is secret, although rumors in the UK indicated Chelsea will pay their Premier League rivals £70million plus bonuses for the former Saint-Etienne midfielder.
“Wesley is a tremendously promising defender who has already established his quality in the Premier League at a young age,” stated Chelsea chairperson Todd Boehly.
“We are happy we were able to bring one of Europe’s most promising talents to Chelsea and further reinforce that section of our squad, both for this season and many more to come.”
Fofana is the latest defender recruited in this transfer window to bolster Chelsea’s defence, following the additions of Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli and Marc Cucurella from Brighton & Hove Albion.
Thomas Tuchel’s side have also recruited England forward Raheem Sterling from Manchester City in the transfer window, which shuts on Thursday.
“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.
Fofana made 52 appearances for Leicester after moving to the Foxes in October 2020 for a record £32m from Saint-Etienne, won the FA Cup in 2021 when they overcame Chelsea.
He made his Saint-Etienne debut as an 18-year-old and played with current Arsenal and France centre-back William Saliba for Les Verts.
He’s Chelsea now. 👊#FofanaIsChelsea pic.twitter.com/GadQSGdXFZ
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 31, 2022
Fofana follows goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in leaving Leicester this summer, with the Foxes yet to make any substantial new acquisitions.
“He departs with the appreciation of everyone at Leicester City and the club’s best wishes for the next step of his career,” Leicester said in a statement.