New Chelsea owner Todd Boehly reportedly used the dinner he held with representatives of the other 19 Premier League clubs to organise deals for Marc Cucurella and Carney Chukwuemeka. The two players joined the Blues last week for a combined total of around £82million from Brighton and Aston Villa respectively.
Chukewuemeka was the first of the two stars to arrive at Stamford Bridge with Chelsea agreeing a £20m deal for the promising young winger. The 18-year-old had only just started to break into the Villa first team towards the end of last season but an impressive showing at the Under-19 European Championship convinced the club to make the move.
Cucurella was next to join having initially seemed destined for Manchester City. However, the Sky Blues were reluctant to meet Brighton’s valuation giving Thomas Tuchel the opportunity to swoop. The left-sided defender joined the club in a £62m deal on a six-year contract.
The seeds for both deals were planted at an event hosted by Boehly last month, according to The Athletic. On July 26, the Chelsea co-owner met those from other clubs across the league at an informal get-together which gave the executives a chance to discuss transfers.
