Enzo Fernandez could make his Chelsea debut this evening (Friday) when the Blues take on Fulham in a west London derby three days after he left Benfica for Chelsea on deadline day. A British record transfer fee of £106.7million was agreed between the two clubs with the 22-year-old signing an eight-and-a-half-year contract.
After starring at the World Cup in Qatar, Fernandez continued his impressive performances throughout January for Benfica and saw interest in him reignited by Chelsea. Negotiations initially began at the start of the month but any potential deal looked to have collapsed because of differing views on a payment structure, with Benfica adamant his £106million release clause had to be paid in full for them to sanction a departure.
However, despite Chelsea completing the move at the eleventh hour they will instead be paying for the World Cup winner in instalments with a £30million fee set to paid upfront followed by multiple instalments. Three days after signing, Fernandez could now make his debut for his new club, with Graham Potter revealing he could be involved in his matchday squad to take on Fulham.
READ MORE: Enzo Fernandez a worry for Graham Potter ahead of Chelsea star's Premier League debut vs Fulham
"We've got to go through the paperwork and get the clearance and all that," he said in his pre-match press conference. "My Spanish isn't great and his English isn't great, but we'll get there. He is an impressive young man and we're looking forward to working with him."
No less than three weeks ago the reverse fixture between Fulham and Chelsea was contested at Craven Cottage with Marco Silva's men coming out on top. After a £323million spend in the winter by Todd Boehly, the Cottagers are set to face an entirely different challenge when they visit Stamford Bridge on Friday, with Silva giving his verdict on their spending in his press conference ahead of the clash.
“I think it’s not new. I know everyone is talking about them because it was a big amount of money in January but it is not the first time,” Silva said. "All of us, we know the difference between certain types of clubs.
“Last summer, they spent a good amount of money too and they strengthened their squad and they were able to do the same this transfer window and show their power.
“If it is too much money or not, it is not for me to talk about it, but just to show the power and show their ambition to improve the squad. It’s clear with younger players and fresh legs what they are trying to do and lucky them they have all this power to sign new players.”
More comments from Silva speaking on Chelsea have since emerged where he name-checks several players including Fernandez, with nothing but praise to give to him.
Speaking about Chelsea players, via Football Daily, he said: "I don't want individualise the situation but of course he's [Fernandez] a player I know really well, at the World Cup he won the space in the starting XI for Argentina. He performed really good but that wasn’t a surprise because in his first six months in Portugal they [Benfica] were playing at a top level.
"A player that will add something good for them. We don't know if he's going to play but if he does, we will be ready."
READ NEXT:
Full Chelsea squad revealed for Fulham clash amid Enzo Fernandez wait and Reece James return
Christopher Nkunku sends Graham Potter clear positional instruction ahead of Chelsea transfer
Predicted Chelsea team vs Fulham – Enzo Fernandez debut decision taken, Mykhailo Mudryk starts
Chelsea Premier League squad confirmed as Enzo Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk absence explained
Chelsea news and transfers LIVE: All the latest news, rumours and gossip from Stamford Bridge
