Chelsea have beaten off competition to agree a £26.3m deal to sign Lyon right-back Malo Gusto, according to Sky Sports.
The Blues’ spending spree continues with the acquisition of 19-year-old however, the newspaper claims he will spend the rest of the season on loan at the Ligue 1 side and team up with his new team-mates in the summer.
Graham Potter is gradually putting the pieces together as he looks to rebuild his own team and is being heavily backed by owner Todd Boehly, having spent a Premier League record £270m last summer.
This window, the London-based side have brought in six players including Mykhaylo Mudryk, Noni Madueke, Joao Felix, Benoit Badashile, David Fofana and Andrey Santos. But they were still in the market for a new right-back and have found a long-term solution in Gusto.
Chelsea have struggled defensively this term with first choice right Reece James spending several weeks on the sidelines due to injury, however he has returned to full training and is expected to available for selection again soon.
Spain international César Azpilicueta has failed to command a starting berth this season due to his poor displays, hence the need to sign a right-back and Gusto seems as a perfect fit for Chelsea.
Reinforcement
Chelsea are flexing their financial muscles and it seems no club can compete with them at moment after beating off competition from Manchester City, Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund – who were also monitoring Gusto.
The West Londoners were linked with a move for a host of right-backs including Celtic’s Josip Juranovic and Sporting ace Pedro Porro but Potter has finally got Gusto – although he will remain in France until the summer.
The deal went through smoothly after Lyon head coach Laurent Blanc was guaranteed by the club’s board that Gusto would stay at the club for the rest of the season.
“The board have guaranteed to me that (Rayan) Cherki and Malo Gusto will be here until the end of the season,” Blanc told reporters as reported by Sky Sports.
Gusto is young and has the potential to improve as a player under the guidance of Potter, having performed similar magic at Brighton before joining Chelsea following the sacking of Thomas Tuchel.
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