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Chelsea complete first summer transfer and bank £13.4m as midfielder sold to Atalanta
Chelsea have completed their first transfer of the summer as Mario Pasalic reportedly joins Atalanta on a permanent deal.
Mario Pasalic scores winning goal for Atalanta in Roma clash
Mario Pasalic has completed a permanent move from Chelsea to Atalanta, according to reports. The Croatian has spent the past two seasons on loan at the Serie A side, making 74 appearances across all competitions.
Pasalic initially joined Chelsea from Hajduk Split for just £3million in 2014, with the central midfielder considered one of the brightest prospects in Europe at the time.
However, things haven't worked out at Stamford Bridge with the central midfielder failing to make a single appearance for the Blues.
Instead, Pasalic has been sent on loan to five different clubs including Monaco and AC Milan.
Most recently, the 25-year-old has been catching the eye with Atalanta and has played a key role in their run to the Champions League quarter-finals this season.
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The Italian outfit have now decided to activate their €15m (£13.4m) option to buy Pasalic, according to reports from Italy.
Journalist Nicolo Schira claims the deal has been confirmed with a five-year contract being signed.
Gazzetta dello Sport report that all of the details remain the same as originally agreed when the loan move was finalised, with Atalanta CEO Luca Percassi unable to wrangle a discount from Marina Granovskaia.
They claim the new deal will see Pasalic earn around €4.8m (£4.3m) - a significant outlay for a side such as Atalanta.
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The transfer fee will be a minor boost to Chelsea's summer warchest, with Frank Lampard expected to overhaul his squad in the upcoming window.
The Blues require at least four new signings - a left-back, a centre-back, a winger and a striker - so every penny earned from player sales will be welcome.
Chelsea have been linked with Moussa Dembele, Victor Osimhen and Timo Werner in attack as they hunt a forward who can ease the goalscoring burden on Tammy Abraham.
Meanwhile, Jadon Sancho appears to be the west London club's priority target out wide but the Borussia Dortmund ace could cost as much as £120m.
Done deal! #Atalanta use the option to buy for Mario #Pašalic. They pay €15M to #Chelsea. All confirmed what i said last march! #transfers #CFC
— Nicolò Schira (@NicoSchira) June 4, 2020
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Philippe Coutinho and Kai Havertz will be almost as expensive but Federico Chiesa, Federico Bernardeschi and Jesus Corona are all cheaper alternatives.
At left-back, Ben Chilwell is top of the wishlist but Leicester are expected to demand £80m for the England international.
Alex Telles, Nicolas Tagliafcio or Alex Sandro would therefore represent more affordable options.
And in central defence, Gabriel Magalhaes and Dayot Upamecano have both been tenuously linked with moves to Stamford Bridge but currently look more likely to join Premier League rivals.