Manchester City have agreed a £125m deal with Chelsea to sign midfielder Enzo Fernandez, according to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, with the Argentina international now undergoing a medical, according to Gaston Edul.
The proposed transfer matches the British record fee paid by Liverpool for Alexander Isak, who joined from Newcastle United last summer in another deal completed towards the end of the transfer window.
The agreement brings an end to an extended period of uncertainty over Fernandez’s future at Chelsea. The 25-year-old had been expected to remain at Stamford Bridge after the club said on 14 August that he would stay for the 2026-27 season.
Chelsea had set a self-imposed deadline for a bid from Manchester City to arrive, but that period passed without an offer being made. The London club had valued Fernandez at £120m and insisted he would not leave during the summer unless that figure was received within the specified timeframe.
Chelsea said those conditions had been communicated to both City and Fernandez’s representatives. The club also stated that his camp had been told about the valuation as far back as May.
However, The Athletic reported on Monday that Manchester City had turned their attention to Fernandez after Liverpool rejected an offer of up to £80m for forward Cody Gakpo. An agreement for Fernandez has now been reached.
The midfielder’s relationship with Chelsea supporters had become increasingly strained in recent weeks. He was booed during the club’s final pre-season fixture against Real Sociedad and received a similar reaction in their opening Premier League match at Fulham.
After that game, Fernandez went down the tunnel at full-time rather than join his Chelsea team-mates in front of the travelling supporters. He was then left out of the squad for the next two matches, against Luton Town in the Carabao Cup and Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Sunday.
Fernandez joined Chelsea from Benfica in January 2023 for a then British record fee of £106.8m. He signed a contract running until 2032 and has made 170 appearances for the club, scoring 31 goals and providing 30 assists.
Doubts about his future emerged several times during the final stages of the 2025-26 campaign. Former Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior left him out for two matches in April, a decision Fernandez’s agent, former Argentina international Javier Pastore, described to The Athletic as “completely unfair”. Fernandez subsequently apologised and returned to the squad.
Manchester City had been considering Fernandez as a midfield target since at least April. They have already strengthened that area this summer with the signings of England midfielder Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest for £116m and Ayyoub Bouaddi from Lille for an initial €95m.
City’s recruitment comes after Rodri joined Barcelona and Tijjani Reijnders moved to Saudi Arabian club Al Qadsiah. Tottenham Hotspur have also signed Savio and Omar Marmoush.
Fernandez worked with new Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca for 18 months at Chelsea. Real Madrid, meanwhile, publicly rejected reports earlier this summer that they were interested in signing the 2022 World Cup winner.
