Atlético Madrid are set to sign Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, putting an end to the lengthy transfer saga.
As reported by Fabrizio Romano, the €40m deal is the highest fee paid by a La Liga side this summer. The deal was brokered by Ali Barat from Epic Sports and Paul Nicholls.
Gallagher has verbally agreed to the contract offer proposed by the Spanish side and he is set to put pen to paper on a five year deal. Chelsea ideally wanted to keep the midfielder, however he rejected their latest contract offer, which would have put him amongst the highest earners at the club.
The 24-year-old was also left unimpressed by the squad position he was offered by the London club. New manager Enzo Maresca doesn’t believe Gallagher has the qualities to play in a possession-based side and therefore offered him a role as a squad player rather than a regular starter.
The two clubs had agreed a €40m deal weeks ago, however the Spanish club were waiting on Gallagher’s final decision. Atletico told the England international that they would not wait forever for his decision and therefore set a deadline, as this would give them sufficient time to look at alternative targets, should the player not accept the contract proposal.
Gallagher made his final decision to join the Spanish giants, just one minute before the imposed deadline. Initially, Atletico had concerns about whether Gallagher was interested in making the switch to Spain.
Moreover, he is now expected to fly and complete his medical, putting an end to his 18-year spell at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea preferred to sell Gallagher overseas compared to a team in the Premier League and this allowed the La Liga side to sign their priority target for a discounted price.
Gallagher, who has less than one year left on his current deal, represented England at the recent Euro 2024.
