Conor Gallagher completes move to Atletico Madrid from Chelsea after weeks-long saga

MADRID: England midfielder Conor Gallagher finally completed his move to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, ending a weeks-long saga when issues arose to jeopardize his departure from Chelsea.

Chelsea wanted to sell Gallagher, an academy product and the team’s vice-captain last season, to help the club meet the Premier League’s financial requirements that are being more strictly applied in recent seasons.

Chelsea and Atletico appeared to reach an agreement on his transfer but it was in jeopardy last week, reportedly because of the collapse of a deal that would have seen Atletico striker Samu Omorodion move in the opposite direction.

That meant Gallagher had to return to Chelsea and train alone but a solution has since been reached, with Joao Felix reportedly on the verge of making the switch from Atletico to Chelsea on loan to facilitate Gallagher’s transfer.

Gallagher moves for a reported 36 million pounds ($47 million) on a five-year deal.

He played for England at the recent European Championship and was one of Chelsea’s best players last season. He has played 95 times for a club he joined as a 6-year-old, scoring 10 goals in total.

It continues a frenzied summer of transfer activity for Chelsea, which continues to overhaul its squad under its American owners.

Nine players have been signed in this transfer window at a cost of more than 200 million. Before that, Chelsea spent 280 million in the summer of 2022, 350 million in January 2023 and more than 400 million in the offseason of that year.