Chelsea have completed the signing of Belgium midfielder Romeo Lavia from Southampton for an initial £53m.
The 19-year-old has signed a seven-year contract in a deal which could rise by a further £5m with add-ons.
Lavia made 34 appearances in all competitions last season but could not help prevent Saints’ relegation from the Premier League.
“I’m really happy to join Chelsea and be a part of this exciting project,” said Lavia.
“It’s an amazing football club with a great history and I’m really excited to get started.
“I can’t wait to meet all my new team-mates and build a chemistry to achieve great things together.”
Having come through the youth system at Anderlecht, Lavia moved to Manchester City in 2020 after being spotted at a tournament in Belgium attended by Pep Guardiola.
The youngster made just two senior appearances at City – in the FA Cup and Carabao Cup – as he struggled to break into the club’s first team and joined Saints in July 2022 for £10.5m.
City will collect 20% (£10.6m) of the initial £53m fee received by Southampton because of a sell-on clause.
Liverpool were also keen on Lavia, but the Reds had a third bid – believed to have been about £46m including add-ons – rejected by Southampton earlier this month.
Lavia becomes the second player this week to have opted for Chelsea over Jurgen Klopp’s side, following Moises Caicedo who joined the Blues from Brighton for a £100m fee which could rise to a British record £115m.
Klopp strengthened his midfield on Friday with the signing of Wataru Endo from Stuttgart, joining fellow new recruits Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai.
“The last week was obviously a tricky one, no doubt about that,” said Klopp on missing out on recent targets.
“But when you have a problem you can stick to the problem or find a solution, I’m more than happy to have the solution.”
On Lavia and Caicedo joining the Blues, Pochettino said: “That is about the players’ decision if they decide to come here.
“It wasn’t a competition. It makes us very happy and they talk very highly about our owners and sporting director.”
Lavia made his debut for Belgium earlier this year, coming on as a substitute with 10 minutes to play in a friendly victory over Germany.
In a statement, Southampton paid tribute to Lavia for his “efforts and professionalism” during his one season with the club, wishing him “every success in what [they] are sure will be a fantastic career”.
Lavia thanked Southampton fans for their support in a goodbye message on Instagram.
“I’ve instantly felt the love for you all despite us not achieving our shared goals,” Lavia wrote.
“I’ll never forget the belief the club and Saints all around the world showed me and I hope I was able to repay the faith you put in me.
“I would especially like to thank all my team-mates and staff members within the club. You have all played a massive part in making my integration into real professional football easier.
“For those reasons, this club will always remain close to my heart. Good luck this season and I look forward to seeing the club marching back to the Premier League where it belongs very soon!”
Speaking before Chelsea travel to London Stadium to face West Ham in the Premier League on Sunday, Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino described Lavia as a “quality player” who is “perfect for this project”.
Lavia becomes Pochettino’s ninth signing of the summer, following Caicedo, Axel Disasi, Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson, Lesley Ugochukwu, Angelo Gabriel, Robert Sanchez and Diego Moreira to Stamford Bridge.
The new Chelsea boss has been tasked with overhauling the squad and vastly improving on last season’s 12th-place league finish.
Mateo Kovacic, Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, N’Golo Kante, Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Ethan Ampadu, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, Abdul Rahman Baba and former captain Cesar Azpilicueta have all departed so far this summer.
Chelsea opened their Premier League season with a 1-1 home draw against Liverpool on Sunday.
Lavia also becomes the 23rd player signed by Chelsea for a fee since American investor Todd Boehly and his Clearlake consortium took over in May 2022, with the owners’ total outlay on new players totalling more than £900m.
