Chelsea have completed the signing defender Tosin Adarabioyo, whose Fulham contract ends at the end of June.
The 26-year-old has signed a four-year contract – which begins on July 1 .
Tosin told the Blues website: ‘Chelsea is a huge club and this is a full-circle moment for me. I was born three miles away from Stamford Bridge and made my professional debut there.
‘I’m very excited and looking forward to helping push the club in the direction we want to go.’
Tosin is a BLUE! 💙✍️ pic.twitter.com/BXXnaHI0UZ
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) June 7, 2024
Co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart said: ‘We are delighted to bring Tosin to Chelsea. Throughout his career, he has showcased his maturity and defensive qualities and has gained a wealth of experience in the Premier League in recent seasons.
‘He is ready to make the step up to Chelsea and work alongside the talented players in our squad. We look forward to Tosin joining up with us for pre-season.’
Newcastle were reportedly also in the race to sign the towering centre-back, who turned down a new deal at Craven Cottage in April, but he has instead chosen to remain in London, where he is the first signing of the Enzo Maresca era at the Blues.
Maresca took over as Man City’s Elite Development Squad boss in 2020, the same year Tosin left the club he had first joined at the age of five.
Tosin’s professional debut arrived in February 2016 at Stamford Bridge, starting for a youthful Man City side in the FA Cup. He made eight appearances in the Champions League and EFL Cup under Pep Guardiola in 2016/17 and 2017/18 but never made a Premier League appearance, going on loan with Championship West Brom and Blackburn in the following two seasons.
The former England under-19 man joined Fulham in 2020 and helped the Cottagers earn promotion to the Premier League, playing 132 games and scoring five goals.
Chelsea have seen Thiago Silva depart this summer for Fluminense while home-grown Trevor Chalobah has been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge this month as the Blues seek to meet Premier League financial criteria.
