Conor Gallagher officially leaves Chelsea as 18-year career ends with transfer saga

Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher has officially joined Atletico Madrid in a £34 million transfer. For £42 million, the Blues will sign Joao Felix, putting an end to an unpleasant transfer drama.

When Gallagher declined to sign a new, short-term contract, his boyhood club virtually kicked him out. The 24-year-old was not included in Enzo Maresca’s training sessions. He was flown to and from Madrid when the two teams’ brief talks went down. Samu Omorodion was supposed to be acquired by Chelsea as part of the Gallagher trade, but the plan never fell through, and Felix will now return from Atletico.

The Portugal attacker, who cost £113 million to sign with Atletico Madrid in 2019, had a brief loan at Stamford Bridge in 2023. He successfully made 16 Premier League appearances and scored four goals. In the end, Felix fell short of expectations in Spain. He also had a turbulent relationship with manager Diego Simeone while on loan at Barcelona.

Gallagher, on the other hand, has joined Three Lions teammate Jude Bellingham in the Spanish capital. This is after agreeing to a five-year contract with the La Liga teams. The six-year Chelsea academy product made his debut appearance in the first team in 2019 but had to go on four successive loans before getting a chance in the senior Blues group.

As owner Todd Boehly pushed Chelsea to a new beginning, Gallagher emerged as the club’s face of homegrown talent. Nevertheless, Chelsea became anxious to cash in on the player-who will be remembered as a “pure profit”-as he approached the last year of his contract in order to comply with the Profit and Sustainability Rules.

Earlier in the summer, Chelsea accepted a club-record offer from Aston Villa for Gallagher. But the Englishman was hesitant to play for another Premier League team. The club have spent more than £1billion on transfers since Boehly took the reigns in May 2022. Academy graduates have been used to fund the spending spree, much to the disgust of fans.

Trevoh Chalobah, who has been at the club for 17 years, looks all-but certain to depart this summer. For Atleti boss Simeone, Gallagher’s energy and gladiator-like spirit is a match made in heaven.

The transfer brings to an end a 18-year association with Chelsea and Gallagher. A player that did and said the right things, protected the club and above all else, cared, will depart the club with his best years ahead of him.