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Daily Mail
a few seconds ago
- Daily Mail
Chelsea owners BlueCo reach agreement to sign Brighton's Julio Enciso, with their outlay on Seagulls recruits rising to more than £250m since their Stamford Bridge takeover
BlueCo, the group that owns Chelsea and Strasbourg, has reached agreement to sign Julio Enciso from Brighton and Hove Albion. The 21-year old midfielder is recovering from a knee injury but will join Strasbourg initially before later transferring to Chelsea. The £13.8million transfer continues BlueCo's astonishing pattern of recruitment from Brighton since taking control at Stamford Bridge in 2022. Enciso is set to become the fifth player signed from the Amex Stadium, following Marc Cucurella, Moises Caicedo, Robert Sanchez and Joao Pedro. In addition, Chelsea paid over £21m in compensation to bring manager Graham Potter and his staff to west London, and later appointed Brighton's former transfer chiefs Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell into senior recruitment roles. The latest deal pushes Chelsea's spending on Brighton players and staff beyond £250million. Enciso joined the Seagulls from Paraguayan side Libertad in 2022 and made 57 first-team appearances, scoring five goals and supplying six assists. His time on the south coast was disrupted by injury, including a torn meniscus in August 2023 that kept him sidelined for six months and caused him to miss 38 matches for club and country. He returned in early 2024 but struggled to secure a regular place under new Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, who left him out of his long-term plans. The attacking midfielder spent the second half of last season on loan at Ipswich Town, contributing two goals and three assists in 13 games. Despite the Tractor Boys' relegation, he impressed in flashes with his direct play and creativity. Enciso's progress has again been halted by fitness issues. He underwent knee surgery in May, which is expected to keep him out for several more weeks. Brighton hope the procedure will finally resolve the recurring problems that have plagued him since 2023. The hope is that Strasbourg can provide a fresh environment and consistent game time once he returns, with the French side qualifying for the Europa Conference League after finishing seventh in Ligue 1. BlueCo purchased Strasbourg in 2023 as part of their multi-club strategy, using the French side to develop talent earmarked for Chelsea. Managed by Liam Rosenior, Strasbourg began their domestic campaign with a 1-0 win at Metz and will also face Brondby in the Conference League play-off round this week. Enciso's arrival is seen as a significant coup for Rosenior's side as they prepare for the demands of European football.
BBC News
31 minutes ago
- BBC News
Arsenal's ruthless Eze coup shows intent
Arsenal's dramatic move to steal Eberechi Eze away from arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur is a ruthless statement of intent designed to show this is the season they plan to finally claim the biggest were ready to roll out the welcoming carpet for Crystal Palace's England forward on Wednesday, the deal virtually done with every indication the 27-year-old was set on the then filtered out that Arsenal were assessing the seriousness of a knee injury to forward Kai Havertz, which could potentially put a dent in their attacking resources - a weakness that played a significant part in manager Mikel Arteta's side ending empty handed for the fifth year in succession last of taking the cheaper option of exploring the loan market, as was first expected, Arsenal went for broke in spectacular style by setting up a £60m coup to take Eze to Emirates Stadium from right under the noses of move to Arsenal, which is now fully expected to be successfully concluded, is not simply a devastating psychological blow aimed across north London at is a clear signal that they have no intention of falling short in their stated aim of mounting a serious Premier League title challenge, as well as making inroads deep into the Champions League once more after reaching the semi-final last is strategy in stark contrast to the inertia that gripped Arsenal last season, when their failure to solve an obvious problem - namely sign a recognised striker - cost them thought they had Eze wrapped up, the possibility of a cash-plus-Richarlison deal discussed, but Arsenal moved with lightning speed once they were confronted by the possibility of Havertz facing a spell on the have been linked with Eze all summer, but it was thought their interest had cooled once Ethan Nwaneri agreed a new five-year contract, on top of signing Chelsea winger Noni Madueke in a £48.5m injury, and its potential consequences, reignited that interest to leave Spurs stunned. Arteta knows this is the season he must land a major prize, and to do this he has been heavily backed by Arsenal's well as Madueke, the Gunners have concluded moves to sign Spain's outstanding midfield man Martin Zubimendi in a deal worth up to £60m and, at least 12 months too late, a recognised striker in Viktor Gyokeres, signed from Sporting Lisbon for £ Eze, who had two years left on his Palace contract, Arsenal will get a versatile forward rich in natural talent who is a match-winner - as he proved when scoring the winner against Manchester City in the FA Cup final in was a follow-up to the spectacular right-foot finish that set Palace on their way to a 3-0 win over Aston Villa at Wembley in the semi-final. Eze also scored the Eagles' opener when they beat Fulham 3-0 at Craven Cottage in the has demonstrated he has the temperament and talent for the big occasion when inspiring Palace to the first major trophy in their will hope he has plenty of those occasions is a scorer and creator of goals, adding real threat to Arsenal's front line, with 14 goals in all competitions last was a boyhood Arsenal fan and was part of the club's academy until he was 13. He may have been initially keen on a move to Spurs, but once the Gunners showed their hand was only one part of north London he was heading has achieved his goals the hard way, spending time at Fulham, Reading and Millwall before signing for Queen's Park Rangers. He left Loftus Road for Palace in a £19.5m deal in August believe they did all they could to conclude a deal - apart from actually concluding it - but it is a hammer blow to chairman Daniel Levy and manager Thomas Frank, who also thought they had a deal for Morgan Gibbs-White in the bag only for him to sign a new contract at Nottingham will revel in the local rivalry of snatching away a prime transfer target for Spurs, but the wider context demonstrates the Gunners are deadly serious about ending the wait for success that now stretches back to has previously admitted to "crying for a week" when he was let go by Arsenal in 2011, but this gifted forward has now been given a golden opportunity to make up for lost time.
BBC News
31 minutes ago
- BBC News
Brighton's Enciso to join Strasbourg
Strasbourg are closing in on a move worth a total of £17.3m for Brighton forward Julio Enciso, with a view that he will play for Chelsea after a year in France. The 21-year-old is expected to finalise terms over a contract in the coming days with Brighton including a sell-on clause in the deal. Strasbourg are linked to Chelsea through their BlueCo ownership, led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, with the move for the Paraguay international potentially the most significant since the £65.2m takeover in 2023. There are significant connections between Chelsea and Strasbourg, who are managed by Englishman Liam Rosenior, with goalkeeper Mike Penders, Kendry Paez and Mamadou Sarr all on loan from Stamford have also signed multiple players from Chelsea, including Ishe Samuels-Smith, Mathis Amougou and Diego Moreira in the last two seasons while there is a host of ex-Premier League talent at the club from former Brighton defender Valentin Barco and former Southampton forward Sekou Alcase club qualified for the Conference League last season through a seventh-placed finish. Meanwhile, Enciso leaves Brighton having been left out of the squad for the opening day draw against Fulham. Enciso scored five goals for the Seagulls and spent the second half of last season on loan at Ipswich Town.
