Chelsea sign 19-year-old midfielder Ugochukwu

Chelsea have signed teenage midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu from Rennes on a seven-year contract, the Premier League club announced on Tuesday.

The France Under-19 international moves to Stamford Bridge for a reported fee of £23.5 million (27.3 million euros, $30 million) as the club continue their rebuild under new boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: “We’re delighted Lesley is joining Chelsea. He is an impressive young player who has already made his mark in Ligue 1. He has a huge amount of potential and we know he is going to continue to develop and improve. We are pleased that he has joined us in the U.S and that he will be able to integrate with the squad quickly.”

Ugochukwu, 19, made his senior debut for Rennes in 2021 and went on to play 60 times for his boyhood club.

He follows Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson and Angelo Gabriel to west London, with defender Axel Disasi’s move from Monaco expected to be completed in the coming days.