CHELSEA have delivered some big news to fans ahead of their return to Premier League action as Timo Werner's transfer to West London has been CONFIRMED.
And the Blues are also confident they will be able to prize Kai Havertz from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee of £70m.
Follow all the latest updates and transfer gossip from the Bridge below…
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HAIL CESAR
Cesar Azpilicueta has praised Chelsea’s move for Timo Werner.
He told Sky Sports: “He’s an amazing attacking player with great experience in the Bundesliga where he has scored a lot of goals.
“He has great experience in the Champions League and Germany’s squad at international level.
“He’s a big addition for our club. He can raise our level.
“As I said before, he’s an amazing player, we know we have to help him to find the best position to score goals and also to adapt to the league as quickly as possible is very important.
“Hopefully we can be competing for the top next season.”
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GIFT OF GAB
Chelsea and Arsenal look set to miss out on a move for Lille star Gabriel.
Le10Sport claims Napoli have agreed a £20million deal with the French club for their Brazilian centre-back.
Chelsea were understood to be keeping close tabs on Gabriel after his brilliant Ligue 1 season.
But both the Blues and Arsenal appear to have lost out to Napoli, although the Coppa Italia champions are yet to strike personal terms with Gabriel.
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TIMO TIME
Chelsea fans still can’t believe they’ve won the race to sign Timo Werner.
And the RB Leipzig star appears to be equally delighted at the prospect of playing for the London giants.
He said: “I am delighted to be signing for Chelsea, it is a very proud moment for me to be joining this great club.
“I of course want to thank RB Leipzig, the club and the fans, for four fantastic years. You will forever be in my heart.
“I look forward to next season with my new team-mates, my new manager and of course the Chelsea fans. Together we have a very successful future ahead of us.”
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RON HIS WAY
Ex-Man Utd legend Cristiano Ronaldo could be the star of the show for David Beckham's Inter Miami side next season.
The Juventus ace is the latest big name to be linked to the MLS side after former Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge and Man City idol David Silva.
Here’s how Inter Miami could line up…
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HAVE A GO
Kai Havertz fuelled transfer speculation as he appeared to 'like' a tweet demanding Chelsea to sign him.
The Bayer Leverkusen star is believed to be a big-money target for Frank Lampard.
And a move could be on after Havertz liked a tweet in the wake of Timo Werner’s signing demanding Chelsea also splash out on him too.
Manchester United are also thought to be extremely keen on the German playmaker.
Arsenal were linked with a move for Havertz in April but are unlikely to have the funds required to complete a deal.
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EXCLUSIVE BY SIMON RICE
Fikayo Tomori is Chelsea's most valuable English academy star, putting headline grabbers Callum Hudson-Odoi, Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham in the shade.
An exclusive study shows that at Arsenal, Ainsley Maitland-Niles is a more valuable asset than fellow homegrown talents Bukayo Saka and Reiss Nelson.
Meanwhile at Manchester United, a slightly more predictable result reveals that Marcus Rashford outdoes Jesse Lingard, Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood.
SunSport teamed up with Carteret Analytics, a London-based investment company who work closely with football clubs around the world.
Their detailed analytics, which are used by numerous clubs as part of their recruitment process, finds the 'Intrinsic Value' of a player – the monetary value of their contribution to increasing the probability of winning matches.
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GOME WITH THE WIND
Angel Gomes’ Manchester United future is still up in the air with just two weeks to go until his contract runs out.
Chelsea are believed to be strong suitors for the whizkid.
And Arsenal were linked with a move last month.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he doesn’t know if Gomes will stay at Old Trafford.
Solskjaer wants the youngster to stay but will not stop him should be opt to leave.
He said: “With Angel, he's a top kid we've had at the club for so many years, we've offered him a deal and hopefully he'll take that and if not I wish him all the best.
“From what I understand it's not too far away, if not we'll wish him all the best.”
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ZIY IN THE SKY
Lampard could instead opt for a more familiar formation with his new stars.
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WERN LOVE
This could prove to be a handy formation against tough defensive sides.
What do you think?
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WATCH AND WERN
Chelsea have Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech in the bag for next season.
But is this how they will line up under Frank Lampard?
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FAVOURITE TI-SHIRT
Timo Werner looks set to be able to keep his beloved shirt number when he plays for Chelsea next season.
The Blues confirmed the German will join from RB Leipzig this summer for £53million.
And with Pedro on course to leave Stamford Bridge, his No11 will become vacant for Werner to claim.
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AUTUMN LEAVES
European clubs could be given three months to complete their business with a transfer window open until October.
Uefa released a statement today calling on player registrations and squads to be all done and submitted by October 6 and therefore proposed the transfer window closed the day before.
Each individual association determines the exact market dates but it is likely the Premier League will agree to open the market at the beginning of July – although players who do swap clubs will not be registered until August and cannot play in the remainder of this campaign.
A July 6 opening would fit the maximum 12-week period that the summer window can be open for.
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PREM GAMES CONFIRMED
The Premier League have confirmed the kick-off times and TV scheduling for the next three rounds of fixtures from July 4 to July 13.
And Frank Lampard's side will face three tricky tasks within a week, as they take on relegation-threatened Watford before trips to Selhurst Park and Bramall Lane.
Chelsea's new confirmed fixtures: Watford (h) – Sat July 4, 8pm, Sky; Crystal Palace (a) – Tue July 7, 6pm, Sky; Sheffield United (a) – Sat July 11, 5.30pm, Sky
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PED-NO?
Pedro is concerned about extending his Chelsea contract to the end of the season because of the risk of an injury.
The Spanish winger's deal at Stamford Bridge runs out on June 30 and he is in talks with Roma over a two-year switch.
A source said: “If he had signed a contract with Roma there would be no problem because the deal would be there in black and white.
“He would be happy to play for Chelsea and give 100 per cent as he always has done.
“But while things are in the balance, if he were to get injured playing for Chelsea in the next few weeks it could ruin his chances of one final move. Roma could simply pull out and leave him high and dry.”
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PRINTING PRESS
Chelsea are getting their special edition kits ready for the the Premier League return.
As seen with the four teams last night, each player's name will be replaced with 'Black Lives Matter' across the back, while the NHS and Black Lives Matter logos will also be added.
????? for the lads. ✨ pic.twitter.com/F1HZPuc8Ag
— Chelsea FC (at ?) (@ChelseaFC) June 18, 2020
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HAVERTZ NEXT?
But while most fans were still enjoying the moment, others were already trying to recruit Agent Werner for his first task: get Kai Havertz to join him.
The Blues continue to be linked with the Bayer Leverkusen star and are hopeful Werner can persuade his Germany team-mate to move to Stamford Bridge as well.
One wrote: “Havertz next please.”
And another replied: “Bring his boy in and seal the double boys.”
Havertz next please ??? pic.twitter.com/YdBQtIBs6b
— Super Frank Era (@SuperFrankEra) June 18, 2020
Bring his boy in and seal the double boys pic.twitter.com/bKL06zj76f
— ? (@CFCBrano) June 18, 2020
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FAN DELIGHT
Needless to say, Chelsea fans are absolutely buzzing – and rightly so.
They have landed one of the hottest properties in world football in the shape of Timo Werner.
One said: “My club are back on top. We're coming for everything, this is just the start.”
Another wrote: “Yessssssss finally.”
And a third added: “I love you!!!! Best club in the world!!!!! I love you so much!!! Thank you!!!!!!”
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CHIL OUT
Chelsea have reportedly been told to forget about signing Ben Chilwell this summer by Leicester.
The Blues value the left-back at around £50m, but the Foxes are said to have told them they won't even consider offers of that amount.
Sky Sports state that Leicester and Brendan Rodgers are relaxed about Chilwell's situation, as he has four years left on his contract and they believe his value will only increase.
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MUNICH RETURN
Chelsea are set to return to the scene of the greatest night in their history on August 7 or 8.
That is the date Uefa have announced for their Champions League second leg against Bayern Munich.
While it has not yet been confirmed that Bayern will be able to host the match, it is almost certain to be played at the Allianz Arena given Germany's extremely low death rate from coronavirus.
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A SALARY TO CELEBRATE
Timo Werner will become Chelsea's top earner when he moves to Stamford Bridge in July.
His earnings of £170,000-a-week will dwarf those of the next highest players – Kepa Arrizabalaga and N'Golo Kante.
However, the Blues may hope to recoup much of that outlay by selling Kepa and releasing Willian in the summer.
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TIMO TWEETS
Timo Werner has just posted this video to his official Twitter account.
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'COVETED ALL OVER EUROPE'
Marina Granovskaia has had her say on a huge deal for the Blues.
“We are very excited that Timo Werner has chosen to join Chelsea.
“He is a player who was coveted all over Europe and it is no surprise, he has that rare mix of being young and exciting and yet established and proven.
“We can’t wait to have Timo on board, but until then we wish him and RB Leipzig all the best for the rest of this season.”
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Timo Werner has a message for Chelsea fans…
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TIMO TALKS
Werner on signing for Chelsea: “I am delighted to be signing for Chelsea, it is a very proud moment for me to be joining this great club.
“I of course want to thank RB Leipzig, the club and the fans, for four fantastic years.
“You will forever be in my heart.
“I look forward to next season with my new team-mates, my new manager and of course the Chelsea fans. Together we have a very successful future ahead of us.”
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DONE DEAL
Chelsea have CONFIRMED the signing of Timo Werner on their website.
The Blues state that the RB Leipzig striker will remain in Germany until the end of the Bundesliga season and then join up with his new team-mates in July subject to a medical.
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