Chelsea's 25 most expensive transfers of all time

Cameron Smith

• 28 Oct 2025 09:00 CDT
• 16 min read

Analysis

Chelsea officially have the biggest expenditure on transfers of any club in world football since 2000, with the Blues splashing well over €2 billion on new signings over the course of the last 25 years.

After previous owner Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003, Chelsea became a major power in European football and their huge spending has continued following the arrival of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital as the club’s new owners.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through the 25 most expensive Chelsea signings in history.

25. Estevao - €45m (from Palmeiras, 2025)

Estevao Willian was wanted by every elite club in Europe following his emergence at Palmeiras, including Barcelona and Real Madrid, however Chelsea won the race for his signature after finalising an agreement in 2024.

The Brazilian, whose transfer fee could increase if certain add-on clauses are met, has already established himself as a fan favourite at Stamford Bridge.

Current ETV

Estêvão

F, M (R)

Chelsea

Estêvão

F, M (R)

Chelsea

€76.3M

ETV Range

€68.7M - €83.9M

View full profile

24. Axel Disasi - €45m (from Monaco, 2023)

Axel Disasi arrived at Chelsea ahead of Mauricio Pochettino’s one and only campaign at the helm, and he played a key role under the Argentine at both centre-back and right-back.

However, he fell out of favour under Enzo Maresca and was loaned to Aston Villa in January 2025 before being placed in Chelsea’s ‘Bomb Squad’ less than six months later.

23. Alejandro Garnacho - €46.2m (from Man Utd, 2025)

After months of transfer speculation, Alejandro Garnacho finally completed his desired move from Manchester United to Chelsea in late August.

It remains to be seen how well he will fare in west London, although fans are concerned by a number of reports regarding his off-field attitude.

22. Cole Palmer - €47m (from Man City, 2023)

The arrival of Cole Palmer in 2023 was met with widespread confusion, but he is the best signing Chelsea have made since Eden Hazard.

His debut season was immense, notching 40 goal contributions in all competitions, and he has firmly cemented his place as a world class attacker since moving to Stamford Bridge.

21. Ben Chilwell - €50.2m (from Leicester, 2020)

Ben Chilwell was earmarked as a key target by Frank Lampard and a deal was completed in 2020 as the Blues spent big following their transfer ban the previous summer.

The Englishman was excellent during his first campaign, helping Chelsea win the Champions League, although injury problems became far too common and he was offloaded to Strasbourg in 2025 after being cast aside by Maresca.

20. Joao Felix - €52m (from Atletico Madrid, 2024)

Chelsea re-signed Joao Felix on a permanent deal with the sole purpose of finalising the sale of Conor Gallagher in the opposite direction.

The Portugal star was subsequently stuck behind the aforementioned Palmer in the pecking order, and he was sold to Al-Nassr in the 2025 summer window following a short loan spell at AC Milan.

19. Timo Werner - €53m (from RB Leipzig, 2020)

After scoring 34 goals in his final season at RB Leipzig, big things were expected of Timo Werner at Chelsea.

However, he was a total flop and he returned to the Bundesliga for just €20m after an underwhelming two-year stint at Stamford Bridge.

18. Jamie Gittens - €56m (from Borussia Dortmund, 2025)

Jamie Gittens joined this list upon completing an initial €56m move from Borussia Dortmund in 2025.

He was essentially signed as a replacement for Noni Madueke, who left Chelsea to join arch-rivals Arsenal. The jury remains out on that decision.

17. Raheem Sterling - €56.2m (from Man City, 2022)

Raheem Sterling was one of Chelsea’s marquee signings during the first transfer window under Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly, with the Blues splashing €56.2m to land the Manchester City winger.

However, he failed to display his best form at Stamford Bridge and, like many others, he was cast aside by Maresca. He is now training away from the Blues first-team.

16. Jorginho - €57m (from Napoli, 2018)

Maurizio Sarri demanded the signing of Jorginho following his appointment at Stamford Bridge, and the Italy midfielder duly followed his compatriot from Napoli.

He played a key role in Chelsea’s Champions League triumph in 2021 and was sold to Arsenal in January 2023 in order to make room for Enzo Fernandez.

15. Fernando Torres - €58.5m (from Liverpool, 2011)

Fernando Torres became the most expensive player in Premier League history when he joined Chelsea from Liverpool in January 2011 for €58.5m.

Injuries had stunted his final few months at Anfield and although he arrived with a reputation as one of the best strikers in the world, Torres flopped at Chelsea. He did, however, score that memorable goal versus Barcelona at Camp Nou en route to the 2012 Champions League title.

14. Christopher Nkunku - €60m (from RB Leipzig, 2023)

Despite the failure of the aforementioned Werner, Chelsea returned to Leipzig to sign Christopher Nkunku following his impressive form in the Bundesliga.

However, fitness and form issues meant the Frenchman failed to adapt to Premier League football and he was sold to AC Milan after two years.

13. Pedro Neto - €60m (from Wolves, 2024)

After years of impressive performances for Wolves against Chelsea, Pedro Neto joined the Blues for €60m in 2024.

He has been a regular starter since his arrival and is evidently favoured by Maresca.

12. Romeo Lavia - €62.1m (from Southampton, 2023)

Chelsea tried to sign Romeo Lavia just weeks after his move to Southampton in 2022, but they were forced to wait until the following summer before beating Liverpool to his signature.

Despite flashes of class, his Chelsea career has been plagued by multiple injury problems.

11. Joao Pedro - €63.7m (from Brighton, 2025)

Chelsea secured yet another signing from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2025, with Joao Pedro arriving halfway through the Club World Cup.

He netted a brace in the semi-final and added another in the victory over PSG in the final to mark a sensational start to life with the Blues.

The 10 most expensive Chelsea signings in history

10. Christian Pulisic - €64m (from Borussia Dortmund, 2019)

Christian Pulisic was tipped to be the long-term heir to Eden Hazard upon his arrival at Chelsea from Borussia Dortmund in 2019.

The American enjoyed an extremely encouraging first season at Stamford Bridge, registering 21 goal contributions across all competitions, however inconsistent form and a patchy injury record saw him slowly fall out of favour.

Pulisic was then sold to AC Milan for just €20m in 2023 and he has enjoyed a successful spell at San Siro.

Current ETV

Christian Pulisic

F (R), M (CR)

Milan

Christian Pulisic

F (R), M (CR)

Milan

€47.9M

ETV Range

€43.1M - €52.7M

View full profile

9. Marc Cucurella - €65.3m (from Brighton, 2022)

Chelsea truly splashed the cash in their first summer under Boehly's ownership and they spent €65.3m on Brighton & Hove Albion left-back Marc Cucurella, beating off interest from Manchester City and Barcelona in the process.

The deal was complicated, with sources prematurely claiming the move was complete, prompting Brighton to release a statement quashing the speculation.

However, a deal was eventually struck, with Cucurella becoming the most expensive full-back of all time. His first season was a disaster, if truth be told, but he has now established himself as one of the best left-backs in the world.

8. Alvaro Morata - €66m (from Real Madrid, 2017)

Alvaro Morata was never a consistent regular at Real Madrid, but the form he displayed on loan at Juventus, and during his fleeting appearances for Los Blancos, suggested that he was a talismanic figure with expert instincts in the box.

That forced Abramovich’s hand, even though Antonio Conte publicly stated he wanted Romelu Lukaku instead, and Morata joined Chelsea.

He scored 15 goals and assisted six in 30 starts during his first season, but poor finishing in his second year, and just five Premier League goals in 2018-19, saw him loaned to Atletico Madrid before they signed him for €35m in 2020.

7. Mykhailo Mudryk - €70m (from Shakhtar Donetsk, 2023)

Mykhailo Mudryk emerged as one of the most exciting wingers in Europe in 2022 and he was expected to join Arsenal during the 2023 January transfer window.

But, Chelsea hijacked Arsenal's deal at the last minute and signed Mudryk for an initial €70m.

The Ukraine international failed to score during his first six months at Stamford Bridge, with his first goal for the club coming against Fulham in October 2023. His worrying form continued into his second full season before he was found guilty of doping. Mudryk faces a footballing ban of up to four years.

6. Kepa Arrizabalaga - €80m (from Athletic Club, 2018)

Due to their policy of only fielding players from the Basque region, it’s extremely expensive to pry players away from Athletic Club, and Chelsea therefore had to pay €80m to sign Kepa Arrizabalaga in 2018 - a world record for a goalkeeper.

Under Maurizio Sarri, Kepa was average at best, but his second campaign at Chelsea was awful. He had the lowest save percentage of any goalkeeper in the Premier League in 2019-20 and he was replaced by Edouard Mendy before the next campaign began.

Kepa was then sent on loan spells to Real Madrid and Bournemouth, before being sold to Arsenal for a mere €5.8m in 2025.

5. Wesley Fofana - €80.4m (from Leicester, 2022)

After spending much of the summer chasing Wesley Fofana, Thomas Tuchel finally got his man on the penultimate day of the 2022 summer transfer window.

Just like Manchester United found out with Harry Maguire, Leicester weren't willing to offload Fofana for a cheap fee and Chelsea were forced to spend €80.4m on the Frenchman.

However, Fofana suffered with fitness issues during his debut season at Stamford Bridge before picking up a significant knee injury in pre-season ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, keeping him out for the entirety of the year. Injury problems have continued to hamper the defender in west London.

4. Kai Havertz - €100m (from Bayer Leverkusen, 2020)

Kai Havertz was regarded as one of the biggest talents in world football during his time at Bayer Leverkusen, which convinced Chelsea to spend an initial €80m to sign him in 2020. It’s believed this fee has now reached €100m after add-on clauses were triggered.

Like his compatriot Timo Werner, Havertz never managed to replicate his Bundesliga form in the Premier League, although he did score the winning goal in the 2021 Champions League final.

After a disappointing final season at Chelsea, Havertz joined the Blues' London rivals Arsenal for €75m in 2023.

3. Romelu Lukaku - €113m (from Inter, 2021)

While it may have seemed odd on paper for Chelsea to spend so much money on a player they once had on their books, the signing of Romelu Lukaku in the summer of 2021 was undoubtedly a statement of intent from the club.

After dominating Italian football with Inter by scoring 64 goals in 95 games over the course of two seasons, and helping the club win their first Serie A title in 10 years, Lukaku returned to English football as one of the best strikers in world football and with a point to prove.

However, despite a promising start to life back at Chelsea, an infamous interview with Sky Italy saw his career at Stamford Bridge grind to a halt. Lukaku was loaned back to Inter and then to Roma, before being sold to Napoli in 2024.

2. Moises Caicedo - €116m (from Brighton, 2023)

Chelsea's summer-long pursuit of Moises Caicedo finally ended with a €116m deal in 2023, and that fee is due to rise even higher with potential add-ons.

The Blues had identified the Ecuadorian as their top target, but despite having agreed personal terms with Caicedo for months, they initially failed to meet Brighton's asking price in excess of €100m.

Liverpool then submitted a bid that was accepted by Brighton, prompting Chelsea to better the offer in order to beat their rivals to the punch. Caicedo has been a fantastic signing for the Blues and he is now widely considered as one of the best midfielders in the world.

Current ETV

Moisés Caicedo

DM, M (C)

Chelsea

Moisés Caicedo

DM, M (C)

Chelsea

€84.4M

ETV Range

€76M - €92.8M

View full profile

1. Enzo Fernandez - €121m (from Benfica, 2023)

Enzo Fernandez broke Jack Grealish's record to become the most expensive British transfer of all time upon moving to Chelsea in January 2023.

Chelsea agreed to pay the release clause included in his Benfica contract, just six months after he had joined the Portuguese club from River Plate.

Fernandes enjoyed a meteoric rise in 2022, and his brilliant performances in midfield helped Argentina win their first World Cup in 36 years. This convinced Chelsea to pay a club-record fee for him as they looked to rectify a dismal start to the 2022-23 season.

The 25 most expensive Chelsea signings of all time

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