Conor Gallagher has officially joined Atletico Madrid for a fee of £34million, as announced by the Spanish club. The midfielder, who had been excluded from playing at Stamford Bridge, has completed his long-awaited transfer from Chelsea.
The announcement of Gallagher’s move was accompanied by a cartoon illustration of an animal with the caption, “Beware of the pitbull.” Aston Villa also showed interest in the 24-year-old, who had previously been the subject of a bid from Atletico at the beginning of the month. Gallagher even travelled to Madrid to finalize the deal, but it fell through when Samu Omorodion rejected the proposed swap. As a result, Gallagher was left in a state of uncertainty and had to return to London while negotiations between the two clubs continued.
Gallagher had already met with Atletico’s management and players, and had even been given a tour of the Metropolitano stadium before his return to London. However, Chelsea stepped in to salvage the deal by offering £40m to sign Joao Felix. Felix arrived in London on Tuesday and underwent a medical before signing a six-year contract with the option for an additional year.
The Blues expressed their gratitude to Gallagher and thanked him for his 18 years of service at the club. Prior to his transfer, Gallagher had been placed in Chelsea’s “bomb squad” – a group of players who were not being utilized as the club tried to find ways to offload them. The English star had been excluded from the first-team squad, preventing him from training with manager Enzo Maresca or even entering the first-team facilities.
