Chelsea have signed the midfielder Tiémoué Bakayoko on a five-year contract from Monaco in a deal worth up to €45m (£39.7m) after he formally completed his transfer to the Premier League champions on Saturday.
The 22-year-old France international underwent a medical at the club on Friday, when he also met many of his new team-mates, as well as coaching staff.
“I am very happy to be here and to join this great team,†Bakayoko, who will wear the No14 shirt at his new club, said. “I have grown up watching Chelsea. Signing was the natural thing for me because it is a club I loved very much in my childhood. I am now looking forward to evolving under this fantastic coach and alongside so many great team-mates.â€
Bakayoko’s impressive performances earned him a first call-up to the senior France squad in March, when he partnered N’Golo Kanté in the midfield during a friendly defeat by Spain.
Bakayoko is, though, thought to be at least six weeks away from being in first-team contention. He had keyhole surgery to clean out one of his knees at the end of the French domestic season.