Chelsea have reached an agreement with Atletico Madrid for Joao Felix. The Portuguese star is a loan target for Graham Potter’s side.
David Ornstein has reported an €11 million fee agreed between the two clubs. The verbal agreement is lower than what the Spanish club were demanding for their forward.
Chelsea are in the market for a forward despite signing David Fofana earlier this month. The Blues wanted a replacement for Armando Broja, after the young striker was ruled out for the season with an ACL injury.
Felix is keen on leaving Atletico Madrid and the Spanish club’s CEO confirmed the news during the FIFA World Cup. Miguel Angel Gil Marin said:
“(Joao Felix) is the biggest bet this club has taken in its history. I personally think he’s a top talent, a world class player. For reasons it isn’t worth getting into – the relationship between him and the boss (Simeone), the minutes played, his motivation right now – it makes you think that the reasonable thing is that if there’s an option that’s good for the player, good for the club, we can look at it. I’d love him to stay personally, but I don’t think that’s the player’s idea.”
Arsenal and Manchester United were interested in the forward, but the 23-year-old is now close to joining Chelsea.
Reports earlier this week suggested Atletico Madrid wanted a £70 million obligation to buy the Portuguese star, but the current reports do not mention of any such agreement.