MANCHESTER: Chelsea signed France forward Christopher Nkunku from German club RB Leipzig on a six-year contract on Tuesday, in a deal worth USD 80 million.
The London club spent around $630 million last season and has got its latest recruitment drive up and running with the deal for the highly rated Nkunku.
After signing a pre-contract with the Premier League club in December, Nkunku completed his move to London, with his contract starting on July 1.
"A big effort was made to bring me to the club and I am looking forward to meeting my new coach and teammates and showing the Chelsea supporters what I can do on the pitch," the 25-year-old Nkunku said.
He made his name with the German club and was voted Bundesliga Player of the Season in 2021-22 after scoring 20 goals and providing 15 assists in the league.
The forward bagged a further 23 goals this season to help Leipzig secure a third-place finish in the Bundesliga.
Chelsea endured a miserable first year under new owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. It recorded its lowest-ever points total in the Premier League and missed out on qualification for Europe.
Managers Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter were discarded and club icon Frank Lampard returned in an interim role to see out the season.
Former Tottenham coach Mauricio Pochettino has been appointed and charged with the responsibility of turning around Chelsea's fortunes, with Nkunku being the Argentine's first major signing.
Nkunku is expected to kick off another busy summer at Stamford Bridge.
"Christopher has proved himself one of the standout attacking players in European football over the past two seasons and will add quality, creativity and versatility to our squad," Chelsea co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said in a statement.