Key facts
- Manchester City agreed £125m fixed fee to sign Enzo Fernández from Chelsea, equalling the British transfer record
- Fee matches Liverpool’s Alexander Isak purchase from Newcastle 12 months earlier
- Fernández becomes the first player in history to move for over £100m twice (Benfica to Chelsea in January 2023 for £106.8m, now Chelsea to Manchester City)
- Multiple significant deals completed on Premier League deadline day, including Newcastle’s £51.4m signing of Matias Fernandez-Pardo from Lille and Aston Villa’s dual acquisitions
The deal and the record
Manchester City have agreed a £125m transfer fee to sign Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernández from Chelsea, equalling the British transfer record. The deal is structured as a fixed fee with no add-ons or performance-related clauses. This ties the record set by Liverpool when they signed Alexander Isak from Newcastle 12 months earlier.
Fernández becomes the first player in football history to be transferred twice for fees exceeding £100m. He previously moved to Chelsea from Benfica in January 2023 for £106.8m, which was then the most expensive transfer in British history. His move to Manchester City now surpasses that earlier record.
Fernández’s background
The 24-year-old Argentine has won titles with multiple clubs. He was part of River Plate before joining Benfica, where he developed into a midfielder sought after by elite European clubs. His arrival at Chelsea in early 2023 made him one of the Premier League’s most expensive acquisitions, but his move to Manchester City comes less than two years after that record-breaking arrival at Stamford Bridge.
Other major deadline day deals
Manchester City’s signing was the headline capture on Premier League deadline day. Newcastle completed the £51.4m transfer of Matias Fernandez-Pardo from Lille, bolstering their squad after losing several players during the transfer window. Aston Villa made two significant signings: Taylor Harwood-Bellis from Southampton for £29m and Ibrahim Mbaye from Paris Saint-Germain for £47m.
Numerous other moves were completed across the Premier League and lower divisions, including loan deals and undisclosed fee transfers, as clubs rushed to finalize business before the 23:00 BST deadline on Tuesday. The Scottish Premiership and Women’s Super League had extended deadlines, with Scottish clubs having until Thursday at 17:00 BST and Women’s Super League clubs until 23:00 BST Thursday.
Chelsea’s situation
Chelsea had previously indicated they would only sanction Fernández’s departure if a replacement had been arranged. However, the substantial fee offered and the player’s desire to leave ultimately led the club to approve the transfer. According to reporting, Chelsea had been monitoring Roma’s Manu Kone and Monaco’s Lamine Camara as potential replacements, though no deal for either had been finalized as of deadline day.
Sources
Featured photo: Little Savage via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)