Lacroix signs, Chelsea's summer spend tops €300m
Maxence Lacroix is a Chelsea player. Crystal Palace accepted around €60m (£50m) for the France international centre-back, and he has signed a six-year deal (1) (2) (5) (7).
"The ambition is clear and I want to be part of what's being built here," Lacroix said after putting pen to paper (1) (3). He called Chelsea a "beautiful club" (3).
He is the seventh signing of the summer under Xabi Alonso, pushing Chelsea's total spend past €300m in six weeks (2). That is what a tenth-place finish forces you to do.
Get the next Chelsea FC brief by email
This article went out to subscribers as a brief. Get the next one straight to your inbox, free.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
Henderson deal close, Merson backs it
Your midfield is adding a voice. Jordan Henderson has terminated his Brentford contract and is set to join Chelsea on a free two-year deal until 2028 (6).
Paul Merson called it smart business. "A player like Jordan Henderson is like an extra assistant coach on the pitch," he said on the VoetbalPrimeur #DoneDeal podcast (9). That is the role Alonso wants him for: leadership, not 90 minutes every week (6).
Late Juventus swoop fails
The club tried. Chelsea made a late move for a €40m-rated Juventus teenage attacker but could not get it done in time (8). No name confirmed, no details beyond that. One that slipped through.
Swedish goal machine Ure on the radar
Robbie Ure keeps scoring. The 22-year-old striker is lighting up the Swedish league and Chelsea have been linked (10). But Strasbourg, the BlueCo sister club, looks a more natural first step if anything materialises (10). One to watch, not one to bank on yet.
Fan-reaktioner
The Lacroix announcement has fans buzzing, and not just about the signing itself. Simon Johnson reports that Benoit Badiashile and Axel Disasi are now up for sale, Trevoh Chalobah is heading out with Como interested, and Mamadou Sarr is lined up for a Championship loan. Read the thread.
Elsewhere, Geovany Quenda is flying to Hong Kong to join the squad for pre-season, and clips of Estêvão dazzling against Western Sydney are doing the rounds. A 17-year-old Kazakh, Dastan Satpaev, scored his first Chelsea goal in that same friendly and the celebrations back home went viral.
