Chelsea have confirmed that they have completed the signing of 19-year-old defender Malo Gusto from Lyon on a deal that runs until 2030.
Chelsea’s newest: Malo Gusto! 👋 pic.twitter.com/wIQ3LkNR9p
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 29, 2023
The Blues had hoped to sign the full-back in January, but a deal with the French club has been reached, and he will remain with his current team for the rest of the season.
Chelsea have had injury problems on both sides of their defence this season, with Reece James and Ben Chilwell both missing time.
Graham Potter has either used Cesar Azpilicueta or Trevoh Chalobah to replace the former, but neither player possesses the skills that James offers.
Chelsea reacted by entering the market for added competition, with Inter Milan’s Denzel Dumfries and Josip Juranovic, who recently left Celtic for Union Berlin, both linked with moves to Stamford Bridge.
However, it was revealed last week that Chelsea had decided on Gusto as their first choice after being impressed by the 19-year-old’s progress at Lyon.
This season, the France Under-21 international has made 15 starts in the Premier League and contributed six assists in 54 appearances.
Despite Chelsea’s efforts to sign Gusto before the end of the month, Lyon insisted that the youngster stay in France for the rest of the season.
Three days after making those remarks, Gusto has signed a contract with Chelsea until 2030.
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While no fee has been disclosed, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claims Chelsea has agreed to pay a fee of €30 million (£26.34 million) plus add-ons.
Gusto’s arrival brings Chelsea’s January signings total to seven, following Benoit Badiashile, Andrey Santos, Noni Madueke, Mykhaylo Mudryk, Joao Felix, and David Datro Fofana.
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