Chelsea have announced the signing of Basel player Renato Veiga.
Towards the end of last week, reports emerged that the Blues were attempting to sign the Portugal Under-21 international for a fee in the region of €14m (£11.75m).
Although a week has since passed, it has been consistently claimed that Chelsea were making headway with their efforts to wrap up a deal.
On Friday evening, the West Londoners confirmed that the versatile 20-year-old had joined the club on a seven-year contract, with the option of a further 12 months.
Veiga joins Tosin Adarabioyo, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Omari Kellyman and Marc Guiu in making the switch to Chelsea during the summer transfer window.
© Reuters
"I'm absolutely buzzing"
Having been plying his trade in Switzerland, Veiga admitted that he had been left "absolutely buzzing" to make the switch to the Premier League at this stage of his career.
Veiga told the club's official website: "I'm absolutely buzzing to be here. This is one of the biggest clubs in England – the biggest for me – and I'm just really excited to get started.
Chelsea have moved to sign Veiga despite the prospect having made just 39 appearances as a professional, those outings coming for Augsburg and Basel.
After making 13 appearances for Augsburg in the Bundesliga, Veiga would make the permanent switch to Basel and feature on 26 occasions during the 2023-24 campaign.
Before then, a combined 62 appearances were made in the Sporting Lisbon youth ranks and for the 'B' side, while he has earned seven caps for Portugal Under-21s.
Welcome to the Blues, Renato Veiga! ✍️🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/Z4668DxFF2
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 12, 2024
Will Veiga remain at Chelsea?
Reports have indicated that Enzo Maresca is more likely to retain the services of Veiga than allow him to go out on loan.
The newly-appointed head coach allegedly likes that Veiga is equipped to play at centre-back, left-back and as a defensive midfielder.
Although he is unlikely to command a regular spot in any of those positions, his versatility means that he could emerge as a valuable squad member.
Whether Veiga remains at Chelsea for 2024-25 could depend on whether the likes of Trevoh Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Lesley Ugochukwu and Cesare Casadei remain at the club.
Darren Plant
