Manchester City have agreed a Premier League record-equalling £125 million ($169m) deal with Chelsea for Enzo Fernández, sources have told ESPN.
The Argentina midfielder has been given permission to undergo a medical after the two clubs settled on a fee which matches the amount Liverpool paid Newcastle for Alexander Isak last summer.
Chelsea initially set a deadline of Aug. 14 for any interested parties to formalise their interest in a bid to close the issue before the start of the Premier League season.
Sources say the Blues had set an asking price of £120m and communicated this to all parties in late May.
However, that deadline passed without any activity but Fernández has been firm in his insistence he wanted to leave the club.
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City stepped up talks in the last 48 hours in an effort to secure a deal and that agreement has now been reached with Chelsea effectively receiving £5m over their asking price.
The club were determined to secure a profit on a player they signed from Benfica for £107m in February 2023.
The 25-year-old was booed by supporters at Stamford Bridge during both their final preseason friendly against Real Sociedad and in their Premier League opener against Fulham.
New Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso then left him out of their midweek Carabao Cup win against Luton, claiming the pair had decided “it was better [for him] not to be part of the squad.”
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Fernández repeatedly questioned his future during last season — telling ESPN Argentina in the immediate aftermath of their Champions League exit to Paris Saint-Germain that he didn’t know if he would be at the club next season.
Former head coach Liam Rosenior then dropped Fernández for two matches following an interview in which he expressed his fondness for the city of Madrid amid speculation linking him to Real.
Chelsea are attempting to secure a replacement with Roma’s Manu Koné and Monaco’s Lamine Camara among the possible options.
Information from ESPN’s Rob Dawson contributed to this report.
