Chelsea reach agreement for signing after ‘straightforward negotiations’ – Announcement on way

Chelsea‘s planned deal for RC Strasbourg’s Valentín Barco is likely to go through in the summer.

The Premier League side first showed interest in the 21-year-old when Liam Rosenior was in charge at Stamford Bridge.

He already managed him at the Ligue 1 side and was keen on reuniting with Barco at Chelsea.

On April 7th, Sport Witness relayed news of Rosenior pushing for his arrival at Stamford Bridge.

Later that month, the Blues parted ways with him and appointed Calum McFarlane as the interim boss until the end of this season.

On April 24th, we covered claims from Argentina that the deal for Barca is on hold. The new permanent manager will make the final decision on whether or not to proceed with this operation.

Easy deal for Chelsea

At the weekend, the Club World Cup winners confirmed Xabi Alonso will take charge from July 1st.

Valentín Barco continues to be a target for Chelsea, who have made concrete progress to sign him.

Bolavip points out the midfielder taking to Instagram to “say goodbye” to RC Strasbourg, a club he initially joined on loan in January 2025.

With Alonso’s appointment and the Argentina international saying goodbye to the Ligue 1 side, the report states Barco’s move to Chelsea ‘will be officially completed in the coming days’.

Journalist Germán García Grova took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to report the west London club are signing the player as they have reached an agreement with Strasbourg.

Chelsea owners BlueCo also own the French club and therefore, the ‘negotiations were straightforward’ for the South American. He will sign a long-term contract, without further clarification on the duration.

Both Bolavip and Grova make no mention of the transfer fee or any further details of the agreement.

How did Barco fare at Brighton

The move to Chelsea will see Valentín Barco return to England after a spell at Brighton & Hove Albion.

He arrived at The Amex from Boca Juniors in January 2024 and played 318 minutes from seven matches as a left-back. The Seagulls sent him on season-long loan to Sevilla in August 2024.

Barco struggled in Spain and his temporary stay at Sevilla was cut short to let him join Strasbourg. In France, he operated as a midfielder, managing three goals and nine assists from 43 matches.

He’ll be hoping the experience in France can help him have a successful return to England.

The Argentine’s contract expires in 2029, and Transfermarkt value him at €35m.