Chelsea have reached an agreement in principle to sell Conor Gallagher to Atletico Madrid for £33 million plus additional payments, The Pitch Prospect has learned.
The Blues had originally asked for £50 million for Gallagher, but he has not yet discussed personal terms with the Spanish team.
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Tottenham continues to monitor the situation as the club has been interested in the England international since last year.
It is now known that Aston Villa accepted a club-record offer for Gallagher in June, but the player decided against the move.
Gallagher was reportedly offered a new three-year contract several times this summer, but turned it down.
The 24-year-old has been under contract with Chelsea since he was eight years old and made the jump to the first team two years ago after four loan spells.
He was subsequently named the club’s de facto captain, as first and second choice Reece James and Ben Chilwell missed most of last season through injury.
Gallagher has long been linked with a possible exit from Chelsea over the past 12 months, despite missing just one Premier League game last season.
However, with the midfielder’s contract entering its final year this year, the Blues have had to work harder to find a suitor.
Atletico Madrid showed interest earlier this summer but could not meet Chelsea’s asking price.
But this week came a breakthrough when the west London team drastically reduced their valuation and accepted Atletico’s offer of £33 million plus add-ons that could go up to £37.9 million.
That’s a whopping £17m less than Chelsea had originally hoped for – and probably less than Villa’s offer too. However, the total could rise if additional payments are made.
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Gallagher could also turn down the chance to join Atletico as personal terms have not yet been discussed.
However, it is believed that the player is interested in the project in Spain as Atletico can offer him Champions League football and the chance to be coached by Diego Simeone.
However, the full transfer fee will be recorded as pure profit in the books of Stamford Bridge, where other players might move in similar circumstances.
Academy graduate Trevoh Chalobah was told to stay at home when the team left for a pre-season tour of the USA, forcing the defender out.
Another Cobham product, Lewis Hall, was sold to Newcastle in the summer after certain clauses of an initial loan deal were fulfilled.
And Ian Maatsen, another player from Chelsea’s youth academy, was allowed to join Aston Villa permanently just weeks after leading Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final.
However, the decision to sell Gallagher will come as a blow to Chelsea fans as he was a crowd favourite and club legend Joe Cole specifically told the club not to let him go.