Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi

Enzo Fernandez has come to know the reaction of his Argentina teammate and captain Lionel Messi over his dramatic move to Chelsea. The young midfielder was fiercely pursued by the Londoners, that the negotiations were spearheaded by their owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. And in the end, Fernandez became the most expensive midfielder ever, as the Blues splashed a whopping £106m for his acquisition.

The former Rover Plate prodigy rose to fame after plying his trade alongside Lionel Messi in the Argentina team which conquered the world last year by lifting the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Fernandez was one of the driving forces which helped Messi achieve his ultimate aim and the dream of winning the coveted trophy. Moreover, the 22-year-old’s performances also earned him the Young Player of the Tournament award at the World Cup.

Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi has apparently provided his reaction to Enzo Fernandez’s move to Chelsea from Benfica for a British record transfer fee. Credits: Twitter

Lionel Messi approves Enzo’s stunning switch to Chelsea

Lionel Messi has returned to PSG with the same form which he displayed in Qatar for the La Albiceleste. While Enzo was honored with the Young Player of the Tournament award, his captain swooped in the Golden Ball for the scintillating displays he put on enroute to glory, scoring 7 goals and providing 3 assists. The 35-year-old recently fired PSG to a much needed victory against Montpellier in the absence of Kylian Mbappe who was subbed-off in the 21st minute due to an injury.

However, Messi is apparently keeping a tab as well on his national teammate, as he liked an Instagram post of Enzo Fernandez wherein he is holding his new club, Chelsea’s home kit with his name and number. It seems Lionel Messi has approved of the move as he will now be keen to watch the young talent perform in the highly demanding Premier League. Meanwhile, Chelsea not only made Fernandez the most expensive midfielder ever, but also a British record signing.

The Blues were on a mindboggling spending spree, both in the summer as well as the winter markets. Their spending sky-rocketed to a whopping £546m across the two windows after another £288m were forked out in the month of January. A total of 15 players have been brought in, with two of them, Joao Felix and Denis Zakaria, signed on loan until the end of the season.

Fernandez becomes Chelsea’s most expensive signing, leaving behind Romelu Lukaku who cost the Blues £100m back in the summer of 2021. However, Fernandez will hope to avoid the fate the club’s previous record signing met with, as Lukaku was a massive flop at the Stamford Bridge and subsequently shipped back to Inter on loan in the summer. He is due to return at the end of the ongoing season.

Nonetheless, Fernandez is a promising talent, having brilliantly linked up with a player such as Lionel Messi. The Argentine captain evidently had a lasting impact on the youngster during the month long tournament in Qatar. Fernandez had scored four goals and provided seven assists in 29 games across all competitions for Benfica this season before joining Chelsea. He will now hope to emulate the same at Stamford Bridge after the club sold Jorginho to Arsenal to make space for him.