Enzo Fernández to Man City
Chelsea sell for £125m record fee

1. 2 Sept · 01:41
   Deal confirmed

   Manchester City and Chelsea both confirmed Enzo Fernández's transfer, with City announcing the signing on their official site.
2. 1 Sept
   Fee agreed

   Manchester City and Chelsea agreed a British transfer record-equalling £125m fee on deadline day.
3. 14 Aug
   Bid deadline set

   Chelsea had set an August 14 deadline for clubs to bid for Fernández, which passed without a fee being agreed at the time.

Manchester City have completed a British transfer record-equalling £125m signing of Enzo Fernández from Chelsea, reuniting the Argentina midfielder with his former Stamford Bridge manager Enzo Maresca.

Manchester City have completed the signing of Enzo Fernández from Chelsea for a fee of £125 million, confirmed by both clubs on transfer deadline day. The fee equals the British transfer record set by Liverpool's move for Alexander Isak last summer, and it means Fernández — signed by Chelsea from Benfica for £107m back in January 2023 — has now commanded a fee above £100m twice in his career. He has signed a five-year contract at the Etihad Stadium, running until 2031.

Fernández said he was pleased with the move: "I could not be happier to be here, and I am ready for the challenge of helping City continue winning trophies. I give absolutely everything and I can promise Manchester City that will continue now I'm here." In a farewell message to Chelsea supporters, he added that the club "will always have a place in my thoughts and, above all, in my heart."

The move reunites Fernández with Enzo Maresca, who managed him at Chelsea before being appointed Manchester City head coach earlier this year as Pep Guardiola's successor. Maresca knows exactly what Fernández offers: a passing range and control of tempo from deep midfield that shaped Chelsea's build-up play, plus a more recent habit of arriving in the box to score. With City rebuilding their squad around a new manager, bringing in a midfielder Maresca already trusts is a straightforward piece of business.

Chelsea lose a player who had become their most productive midfielder. Fernández had his best season in front of goal in 2025-26, scoring 10 goals and adding four assists in 36 Premier League appearances, and across the previous two seasons combined only Bruno Fernandes and Mohamed Salah registered more Premier League assists than his tally. In total he made 170 appearances for Chelsea, scored 31 goals, and won the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup during three and a half years at Stamford Bridge. He had made clear earlier this year that he wanted to leave, and under new head coach Xabi Alonso he had been left out of Chelsea's matchday squad this season, with Alonso saying the pair had agreed it was better for him not to be involved.

Chelsea had lined up Monaco's Lamine Camara as a direct replacement, agreeing a £47m fee for the midfielder, but Monaco pulled out of that deal in the final minutes of deadline day after also negotiating Folarin Balogun's move to Everton. Chelsea pressed on with the Fernández sale regardless, banking an £18m profit on the fee they paid Benfica for him.

At City, Fernández adds another ball-playing option in central midfield as Maresca reshapes the squad following Guardiola's departure. His ability to dictate matches from deep, combined with the goal threat he showed last season, fits the profile City have relied on to control games for the best part of a decade. How quickly he settles will depend on where Maresca uses him alongside City's existing midfielders, but he arrives with the tools to go straight into the team.

• Announced by the clubs100

A sourcing score, not a chance of completion: it grades how solid the reporting behind the move is. The stage and the evidence come from the sources listed below; the arithmetic is fixed in code, the same for every deal.

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• Man City agree record-equalling £125m deal with Chelsea for Enzo Fernandez
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