Premier League Club Chelsea Announce Signing of Nigeria-Eligible Striker Emanuel Emegha

• Emanuel Emegha has signed a seven-year contract with English Premier League club Chelsea from next summer
• The Nigeria-eligible forward has been impressive for French Ligue 1 side Strasbourg, attracting interest from several teams
• He has decided to remain at Strasbourg for one more season, as the club is also owned by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital

English Premier League club Chelsea have announced the signing of Nigeria-eligible forward Emanuel Emegha from partner club Strasbourg.

The 22-year-old will remain at the French Ligue 1 outfit, owned by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, for one more season before moving to Stamford Bridge.

It was gathered that the striker signed a pre-contract of seven years, which will see him at the Premier League club until 2032.

Further reports say Emegha turned down interest from several top teams in Europe before agreeing to join the London club, per BBC.

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It was due to his imminent deal that Chelsea decided not to sign a striker on transfer deadline day as a possible replacement for the injured Liam Delap, who is out for 10 to 12 weeks.

Emegha played a key role for Strasbourg last season as he captained them to their first European campaign since 2020 through the Conference League.

Chelsea said in a statement on their website:

"Chelsea Football Club has agreed a deal to sign striker Emmanuel Emegha from Ligue 1 side RC Strasbourg, with the Dutchman officially joining in 2026.

"Emegha, 22, scored 14 goals and provided three assists in 27 appearances in Ligue 1 last season, earning him recognition as one of the most exciting young forwards in Europe."

The striker took to his Instagram handle to express his gratitude, saying he can't switch to the English club. He wrote:

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"Proud and grateful to sign with Chelsea FC. I’ll be joining the club in 2026 and can’t wait for this next step in my career. The journey continues ."

Chelsea, Strasbourg in mutual business

Emegha's signing details the close relationship between both clubs after the French team was bought by the new multi-club group BlueCo in 2023 for £65millon.

The move by Ben Chilwell to Strasbourg on the transfer deadline day was the sixth transfer involving both teams.

Young prospects Kendry Paez and Mike Penders joined Chelsea during the summer transfer window before moving to the French outfit on loan.

Also, Mamadou Sarr left Strasbourg to join Chelsea on a permanent deal worth £11.8million, before returning to the French club on loan following the Club World Cup.

Apart from the three loan signings, Strasbourg signed defender Ishe Samuels-Smith from the Chelsea academy for £6.5 million and midfielder Mathis Amougou for approximately £12million.

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Chelsea's new signings to be banned?

Legit.ng earlier reported that Chelsea face a race against time to make sales or risk a UEFA ban for the registration of their new signings for the Champions League this season.

The Blues reportedly breached UEFA's financial sustainability regulation and the club's squad cost ratio in the 2024 financial year.

Source: Legit.ng