Enzo Fernandez joins Man City from Chelsea in joint-record £125m Premier League deal

Manchester City completed the signing of Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea on transfer deadline day for a £125million fee, making the Argentina midfielder the joint-most expensive player in Premier League history alongside Alexander Isak, who moved from Newcastle to Liverpool last summer.

Fernandez, 24, arrives at the Etihad to reunite with Enzo Maresca, who departed Stamford Bridge on New Year’s Day and has been pushing for his former player’s arrival following a significant midfield overhaul at City. Rodri, Tijjani Reijnders, Nico Gonzalez and Bernardo Silva have all left the club this summer, leaving a void that Maresca was eager to fill with a player he knows well.

The fee surpasses Fernandez’s own previous record. He joined Chelsea from Benfica in January 2023 for £107million — then a British record — meaning he has now been involved in two of the most expensive transfers in English football history within the space of two years. Chelsea stand to make a profit on the deal, having also seen Fernandez help the club win a European trophy, return to the Champions League, and lift the Club World Cup during his time at Stamford Bridge.

His exit from west London had been anticipated for some time. Fernandez was dropped for two matches by Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior in April after publicly expressing interest in Real Madrid during an international break, and he was booed by a section of the home support last month following his involvement in Argentina’s controversial World Cup campaign.

Despite the turbulence, his relationship with Maresca remained intact — and that connection proved decisive. According to analysis from journalist John Cross, Fernandez had his heart set on playing under Maresca again, and his best performances in a Chelsea shirt came during the Italian’s tenure.

The deal also underlines a broader financial trend reshaping European football. Fernandez tops a summer list of enormous transfers that includes Bradley Barcola (£123m, Paris Saint-Germain to Liverpool), Morgan Rogers (£117m, Aston Villa to Chelsea), and Elliot Anderson (£116m, Nottingham Forest to City). Seven of the top ten transfers this summer have involved Premier League clubs buying from one another — a reflection of the division’s growing financial dominance over its European rivals.

The pattern also points to a shift in how clubs approach deals under Profit and Sustainability Rules, with certain sides developing structured trading relationships rather than refusing to sell to domestic competitors.