Chelsea set to sign Malo Gusto from Lyon

Chelsea have agreed on a deal with Olympique Lyonnais to sign Malo Gusto, according to Fabrice Hawkins. The Premier League club will pay £26 million plus bonuses for him.

However, the Frenchman will not join Chelsea immediately. He will finish the season with the French club before joining his new team ahead of the next campaign.

The move is a win-win for everyone. Chelsea sign their target, while Lyon and head coach Laurent Blanc can keep him until the season ends.

Chelsea have been searching for a right-back to provide competition for Reece James. The England international is one of the best in the world in his position, but he is injury prone.

This situation has left Chelsea needing to play the past-it Cesar Azpilicueta and inexperienced Trevoh Chalobah at right-back. The drop-off in quality when James is not on the pitch is very evident.

Chelsea had their eyes on Sporting CP’s Pedro Porro, Olympique Marseille’s Jonathan Clauss, and Gusto. They chose Gusto as he falls in line with the club’s youthful policy in the transfer market.

The 19-year-old joined Lyon’s famous academy in 2016. He was initially an attacking midfielder and only switched to right-back when an age group above him needed someone to fill in at right-back.

Gusto made his senior team debut in the 2020/21 season, replacing Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimaraes. He has made 54 appearances for Lyon, assisting six goals. This season, he has recorded one assist for Les Gones in 15 appearances. He is yet to score a goal in the first team.

Gusto is still understandably raw, but there are a lot of positive elements to his game. He can be naive defensively, but he is a constant threat when he joins the attack. Chelsea will enjoy his ability to skip past players and whip in dangerous crosses for attackers.

Chelsea are stockpiling young talents under the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Consortium regime. The Blues have invested heavily in prospects like Andrey Santos, Benoit Badiahile, Mykhailo Mudryk, David Datro Fofana, and Noni Madueke. They have added Gusto and will hope coach Graham Potter can mold these expensive gems into a solid team.

The London club will now spend the last few days of the transfer window searching for midfield reinforcement. They are ready to return for Enzo Fernandez while keeping an eye on Arsenal’s negotiations with Brighton & Hove Albion for Moises Caicedo.