LONDON – Chelsea have completed the signing of Strasbourg midfielder Valentin Barco on a seven-year deal.
The 21-year-old becomes Chelsea’s sixth signing of the summer following the arrivals of Morgan Rogers, Danny Welbeck, Emmanuel Emegha, Maxence Lacroix and Marco Palestra.
Chelsea did not disclose the fee. Barco will now join the remainder of the Blues’ pre-season tour, with the club set to face Italian side Juventus in Hong Kong on 5 August.
A product of Boca Juniors’ academy, Barco joined Brighton in 2024 for a fee of £7.9m. He spent just one year on the south coast before moving to Strasbourg last summer following a successful loan spell.
Barco appeared once for Argentina at the 2026 World Cup, where they finished runners-up to Spain. He made headlines after being slapped by Jude Bellingham following the semi-final victory over England.
The midfielder is the second player this summer to join Chelsea from Strasbourg, with both clubs owned by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. It is the 13th deal between the two clubs since the start of last season.
Chelsea Sign Valentin Barco From Strasbourg On Seven-Year Deal
