Chelsea have repeated a similar trick to Arsenal with the signing of Raheem Sterling, with Mikel Arteta already welcoming Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City.
The Gunners sealed a £45million deal to bring Jesus to the Emirates Stadium this summer as the Brazilian entered the final year of his contract with City. The Blues announced they had completed the signing of Sterling for a similar fee this week after the England international found himself in a similar position to Jesus at the Etihad Stadium.
Thomas Tuchel was keen to strengthen his attack this summer with Todd Boehly set to significantly back the German as a new era began at Stamford Bridge. football.london understands that Chelsea and the Gunners were both interested in signing Leeds winger Raphinha, with the Blues having agreed a fee with the Whites, but were beaten to his signature by Spanish giants Barcelona.
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Mikel Arteta prioritised a move for Jesus this summer with technical director Edu putting in months of work, talking to Jesus' camp to convince the player on Arsenal's project and how the Brazilian striker fit into it. Having worked with Jesus during his time as part of Pep Guardiola's coaching staff at City, the 25-year-old was keen to reunite with Arteta in north London ahead of the 2022/23 season, despite not having the chance to play in the Champions League next term.
Sterling becomes the first signing of the Boehly era at Chelsea and joined up with his new teammates in Los Angeles after completing a medical in London over the weekend. The 27-year-old was entering the final 12 months of his deal with City, similar to Jesus who refused to sign a renewal and preferring to join Arteta's team, becoming the Gunners' starting striker.
Following the arrivals of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez both Sterling and Jesus would've found their first team football opportunities reduced next season if they had stayed with Guardiola's side. Sterling had been previously linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium before sealing a move to Chelsea and will be part of Tuchel's new-look attack next season following the departure of Romelu Lukaku back to Inter Milan.
Following the announcement of his move to Stamford Bridge, Sterling said: "First and foremost, it's a pleasure to be here. I've obviously achieved a lot in my career so far, but there is still so much more to achieve, and I'm really looking forward to doing that in a Chelsea shirt under Thomas's management.
"London is my home and where it all started for me, and it's amazing I now have the opportunity to play in front of friends and family week in, week out at Stamford Bridge."
Sterling and Jesus will now both get the chance to be the main man in attack for their new clubs, with the latter already impressing for the Gunners in his first appearance, albeit being a pre-season friendly. The England international will be hoping to have a similar impact straight away for Tuchel's side, with the London rivals set to face each other in the Florida Cup on Saturday, July 23.
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