21 Jul 2026 22:13 BST | 3 min read
Morgan Rogers, Chelsea
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Cameron Smith
Cameron Smith | Digital Content Producer
Accredited sports journalist covering football since 2020
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Chelsea have officially completed the signing of Aston Villa attacker Morgan Rogers for a British transfer record fee of €138 million (£117m).
The England international has signed a six-year contract at Stamford Bridge, with the option for a further 12 months, and he has become the second new arrival of the Xabi Alonso era in west London, following the signing of Atalanta defender Marco Palestra.
Rogers was Chelsea’s primary attacking target for this summer and they finalised a deal for his signature within 48 hours of England’s World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina, despite strong competition from Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta’s side were considered to be the frontrunners to sign the 23-year-old this summer, however they were unwilling to match Aston Villa’s asking price and this allowed Chelsea to swoop.
It’s understood that Alonso played a pivotal role in Rogers’ decision to move to Stamford Bridge and the England star is expected to report for pre-season training after a short break following his exploits at the World Cup.
"I'm so excited," Rogers said after being unveiled. "For me, Chelsea are the biggest club in London and a club I've always admired since I was a kid. I'm really excited about the project with the new manager, the players we've got and where the club is heading. That's why I'm here and I can't wait to get started."
A key reason behind Chelsea’s decision to make Rogers their most expensive signing of all time is his versatility in attack.
The 23-year-old is capable of playing as a left winger, right winger, attacking midfielder or as a false nine, while he was even deployed in a more reserved midfield role by Thomas Tuchel at the World Cup.
As a result, Rogers is likely to feature in a number of different positions during his first season at Chelsea, although it’s expected that he may regularly be used as a left winger if Alonso favours a 4-2-3-1 formation or as a left-sided attacking midfielder if the new Chelsea manager prefers the 3-4-3 system he adopted to great success at Bayer Leverkusen.
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