Manchester City completed a dramatic £125million deadline-day deal for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez, while Chelsea were left furious after Monaco cancelled an agreement for their intended replacement, Lamine Camara.
Fernandez’s transfer matches the British record fee Liverpool paid Newcastle for Alexander Isak last summer. The £125m package for the 25-year-old Argentina international is a guaranteed payment with no add-ons, and he had been Enzo Maresca’s leading target during the window.
Chelsea believed they had secured Camara from Monaco for £47m with fewer than two hours of deadline day remaining. But as the 11pm cut-off drew closer, Monaco abruptly reversed its position, leaving the west London club shocked and angered.
Chelsea sources insist that a complete written agreement had been reached between the two clubs for Camara’s transfer. However, after Monaco reopened negotiations over Folarin Balogun’s proposed move to Everton, Chelsea were informed that the deal for Camara had been withdrawn.
People inside Stamford Bridge described Monaco’s handling of the situation as an unprofessional way to conduct transfer business.
Enzo Fernandez poses in a Manchester City shirt after completing his £125million deadline-day transfer
Everton’s proposed move for Monaco striker Folarin Balogun also collapsed after the player changed his mind about joining the Premier League club.
Everton had submitted a deal sheet to gain extra time after revising the terms of a £40m agreement with Monaco, but the United States international became increasingly reluctant to complete the transfer.
A concern raised during Balogun’s medical caused the negotiations to stall. Everton subsequently explored alternative attacking options while attempting to restructure the agreement with Monaco.
The club contacted Manchester United about a loan deal for Joshua Zirkzee and also approached Aston Villa regarding a temporary move for Tammy Abraham.
Neither proposal advanced, with both clubs deciding there was insufficient time left in the transfer window to negotiate a deal.
Everton and Monaco eventually reached an agreement over a revised deal structure, but the move collapsed when Balogun made it clear he no longer wanted to leave.
Everton also granted Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s wish by extending Jack Grealish’s loan for another season, as Premier League clubs pushed summer spending beyond a record £3.2billion following a frenetic deadline day.
The Toffees had earlier turned to Ainsley Maitland-Niles, completing a £4m deal for the former Arsenal utility player after Fulham refused to sanction Kenny Tete’s departure. The Netherlands international had been set to join Everton for £9.4m, but Fulham were unable to find a replacement because Rayo Vallecano were unwilling to sell Andrei Ratiu. Everton had already transferred Nathan Patterson to Torino.
Everton striker Beto moved to Fiorentina for £15.4m, while Iliman Ndiaye completed a dream £65m transfer to Manchester City on a contract running until 2031. “I’ve worked my whole life for an opportunity like this,” he said. “City are one of the best clubs in the world. To be able to write my own chapter in a story that special is the chance of a lifetime and I’m determined to grab it with both hands.”
Jack Grealish will spend another season at Everton on loan from Manchester City
Elsewhere in the city, Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott joined Valencia on loan until the end of the season. The club also signed 18-year-old goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans from Belgian side Genk in a deal that could eventually reach £30m.
Brughmans has signed a six-year contract but will remain with Genk on loan for the current campaign. He is expected to move to Anfield next summer, when first-choice goalkeeper Alisson’s contract expires.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Watch Live: Sheriff Judd on Shooting, Child Hurt at Polk Burger King
Arsenal failed to land the high-profile attacking reinforcements they had hoped for, although they did sanction a loan move for 19-year-old Ethan Nwaneri to Borussia Dortmund.
Lyon winger Malick Fofana kept Sunderland and Crystal Palace waiting throughout a chaotic day as his representatives sought improved proposals from both clubs. The 21-year-old twice agreed terms to join Palace and twice appeared ready to move to Sunderland, eventually choosing Wearside after Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus travelled to Lyon to convince him.
Palace turned to Midtjylland’s Chile international Dario Osorio. They also revived talks for Marseille midfielder Quinten Timber and Ben Chilwell returned, while Borna Sosa went to Cologne on loan.
Malick Fofana accepted offers from both Sunderland and Crystal Palace before joining the Black Cats
Tosin Adarabioyo joined Tottenham from Chelsea for £10m plus £2m in add-ons. His Chelsea teammate Mykhailo Mudryk also joined Spurs on loan saying he is ‘excited to be reunited’ with his old Shakhtar boss Roberto de Zerbi.
Leeds rejected an approach from Sunderland for Noah Okafor but allowed Willy Gnonto to join Fiorentina on loan.
Leeds agreed to loan speedy Eintracht Frankfurt winger Jean-Matteo Bahoya with an option to buy for £21m plus add-ons. They also added NICE left-back Melvin Bard on loan with an option to buy for £4.28m.
Man United’s proposed bid to sign 18-year-old midfielder Louis Page from Leicester City was called off. The clubs had been in talks over a deal worth more than £10m, with Leicester looking for £12m rising to a potential £15m and a sell-on.
United were offered Man City left-back Rayan Ait Nouri but their neighbours would only agree to a loan with obligation to buy and the Old Trafford side had no desire for a permanent move.
Newcastle signed forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo from Lille for an initial £51.4m and rejected further offers from Nottingham Forest worth up to £15m for 31-year-old winger Jacob Murphy.
Matias Fernandez-Pardo joined Newcastle from Lille in a deadline day deal
Forest defender Morato headed to West Ham on a season-long loan, with the option to make the deal permanent while Forest defender Zach Abbott signed a new contract then joined Southampton on loan.
Aston Villa completed the signings of Senegal winger Ibrahim Mbaye, 18, from Paris St-Germain for £47m and English centre back Taylor Harwood-Bellis, 24, from Southampton for £25m with £4m in potential add-ons.
Hull City agreed deals for winger Sorba Thomas from Stoke and Olympiacos midfielder Christos Mouzakitis. They also added Genoa wing-back Brooke Norton-Cuffy with Cody Drameh heading the other way while Everton midfielder Tim Iroegbunam signed too.
Brighton moved to sign defensive midfielder Chema Andres from Stuttgart for £18m and struck a deal with Millwall for Femi Azeez.
Sunderland signed Kevin Danso from Tottenham and agreed a £5m deal for striker Juan Riquelme Angulo, 18, from Ecuador talent factory Independiente del Valle.
Fulham added another Real Madrid player, £3m midfielder Manuel Angel, and moved for Elche defender David Affengruber and Frankfurt’s Hugo Larsson.
Ipswich completed the £20m signing of Burnley forward Zian Flemming while Arsenal keeper Tommy Setford, 20, joined League One side Stevenage on loan.