MADRID,SPAIN | Xinhua | Atletico Madrid have signed England international midfielder Conor Gallagher from Chelsea for a reported fee of around 40 million euros (44 million U.S. dollars).
The 24-year-old flew to Spain after Chelsea accepted Atletico Madrid’s offer for the former youth team player at the end of last week and although the move has not been made official, he has been pictured training with the rest of the Atletico squad.
Atletico have been looking to strengthen in midfield after the departure of Saul Niguez and Gallagher is very much the profile of the kind of player coach Diego Simeone is looking for.
Gallagher progressed through the youth ranks at Chelsea and also had loan spells with Charlton Athletic, Swansea City, West Brom and Crystal Palace, where his form won him an England debut and a place in the Chelsea first team squad for the past two seasons.
The dynamic midfielder’s hard work in central midfield and ability to score important goals made him a regular starter last season, but Chelsea’s need to meet financial fair-play requirements after their big spending over the past two years is very likely a key factor in the club’s decision to sell him to Atletico.
Gallagher is Atletico’s third major signing of the summer and his arrival follows hot on the heels of the arrival of striker Alexander Sorloth from Villarreal and defender Robin Le Normand from Real Sociedad.
Atletico are also thought to be closing in on a big-money deal for Manchester City’s Argentina international, Julian Alvarez. â–