Romeo Lavia will get to work quickly at Chelsea after sealing his high-profile transfer to Stamford Bridge.
The one-cap Belgium international officially completed a switch from Southampton on Friday, with the deal worth an initial £53million plus a further £5m in add-ons.
That takes Chelsea’s transfer spending to approximately £380m during another hectic summer, while the £1billion mark is now firmly in sight from just three opening transfer windows under the Todd Boehly-Clearlake ownership group.
Lavia is eager to hit the ground running at Chelsea, set to join his new team-mates in training under Mauricio Pochettino at Cobham on Friday before being potentially available for a swift debut in the Premier League London derby away at West Ham on Sunday.
The 19-year-old has signed a seven-year contract with the Blues valid through the summer of 2030, taking on the same No45 shirt as he previously wore at Southampton, where he shone in 34 total appearances last season following a move from Manchester City despite the Saints’ relegation to the Championship.
Former Anderlecht youngster Lavia is in contention for a quick Chelsea debut alongside Moises Caicedo, who swapped Brighton for the Bridge in a British record deal worth an eye-watering £115m on Monday. Both talented young midfielders had also been subject to serious interest and bids from Liverpool, but they each held out for dream moves to west London.
“I’m really happy to join Chelsea and be a part of this exciting project. It’s an amazing football club with a great history and I’m really excited to get started,” Lavia said after completing his move to Chelsea.
“I can’t wait to meet all my new team-mates and build a chemistry together to achieve great things together.”
Scroll through the gallery at the top of the page to see the first pictures of Romeo Lavia in a Chelsea shirt!
