Chelsea have signed Mark Cucurella from Brighton in a deal worth over £60million.
The 24-year-old, who has agreed to a six-year deal, was signed up in time for Saturday Night Football’s clash with Everton. sky sports.
Chelsea have dug into Brighton when announcing the deal, echoing the format of a tweet earlier this week, denying reports that an agreement had been reached for the defenders.
He comes after the arrival of Raheem Sterling (£47.5m) from Man City, Kalidou Koulibaly (£33m) from Naples, Gabriel Slonina (£12m) from Chicago Fire and Carney Chukuemeka (£20m) from Aston Villa. The total expenditure will be £20m. 172m so far.
Cucurella will have minutes at left-back with Ben Chilwell, who was signed by Leicester for £50m two seasons ago, but head coach Thomas Tuchel says his new acquisition will bring versatility across the backline. said to bring
“useful [fit-again] Ben said, “I have to deliver, and I definitely need you right now,” to escape the pressure,” Tuchel said.
“We also have Marcos Alonso and Emerson, but Marc is an option for this position and he can play very well in the back three. He has the profile of Aspi (Cesar Azpilicueta) with his left foot. It gives us many options.
“Ben is very ambitious and can’t wait to get back into training with the team. He needs a little more time to adapt to the rhythm and physicality of the game itself. This is normal. Requests. It’s a tough league and we’ll take care of him and don’t throw him away.”
Manchester City tried to sign Cucurella but failed to live up to Brighton’s assessment of the Spanish national team.
Cucurella’s transfer is Brighton’s record sale, surpassing the £50million Arsenal paid centre-back Ben White last summer.
It’s also a record amount for a full-back and rivals City’s £60m deal to bring Joao Cancelo from Juventus to the Etihad in 2019.
The Blues are looking to sign Leicester defender Wesley Fofana.
They are also believed to be a candidate for Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who is Manchester United’s top target this summer.
Colwill joins Brighton on loan from Chelsea
Levi Colwill joins Brighton on season loan from Chelsea.
The England U-19 defender will spend his new Premier League campaign at Albion after a successful season at Huddersfield Town.
Head coach Graham Potter said: “Levi’s have huge potential and have already shown that in the Championship last season and with the England under-21 age group.
“I am really looking forward to working with him on the training pitch and in games throughout the season.
“He plays mainly at centre-back, but he also plays at left-back and is a good player with the ball.”
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