Chelsea appear to have beaten Manchester United to the signing of Lyon right-back Malo Gusto after they reportedly reached an agreement in principle with the French club for the ace. Gusto, who is just 19 years old, is regarded as one of the most talented right-sided defenders in European football.
Chelsea were taken over by Todd Boehly at the end of last May after their Russian oligarch owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned and put the club up for sale following his country’s invasion of Ukraine. Boehly stumped up around £274million to sign new players during the summer transfer window and has already shelled out £188m since the turn of the year to bolster the Blues team further.
With regular right-back Reece James struggling with a series of injury problems this season, Boehly pinpointed the position as one he would like to strengthen. And he has now landed Gusto, despite the fact Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas played down a move earlier this week.
According to The Athletic, Chelsea have agreed to pay Lyon £26m plus add-ons in exchange for Gusto. And to get the deal over the line, the Blues have said they are happy for the teenager to remain at the Groupama Stadium until the end of the campaign before moving to west London.
Gusto came through the Lyon academy and became a regular in their first-team at the start of last season after being handed his debut as a late substitute in a Ligue 1 clash against Saint-Etienne in January 2021.
During the last campaign, the star made 37 appearances for Lyon and started both legs of his side’s Europa League quarter-final against West Ham as the French side were knocked out of the competition following a 3-0 defeat in front of their own fans in the second leg.
