Manchester City agree deal to sign Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea

Okay welcome back to Sky Sports News. This starts with some big breaking transfer news. Our reporter Michael Bridge is here to tell us more. Michael what have you got for us? Yeah it involves Chelsea and Manchester City and it's big news. It's an incoming for treble winners Manchester City. They've agreed a deal to sign Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic. So big big news and a big incoming for Manchester City. Now the fee is understood to be worth around £30 million. £25 million guaranteed plus £5 million in performance related add-ons. Now we're expecting a formal announcement later today but that's big news in terms of Manchester City starting their summer business now after a brilliant few weeks for them and of course Chelsea's outgoings which we've been talking about for the last few days and that's a big player for Chelsea but of course with his contract running out at the end of next season they're back to acting. It sounds like the player is very keen to go and play at Manchester. Yeah you're right from Real Madrid but in his time at Chelsea he's won the Champions League, he's won the Europa League, he's won the Super Cup, he's come on the FIFA Club World Cup. He was champions of the world with Chelsea being a runner-up in the FA Cup and the Cup twice so his contribution to Chelsea has been highly significant but as you say he's 29, he has one year on his contract. Who's got the better end of this deal do you think? I think a bit of both I'd say you know this is a player as you say you've just whittled off all the honours he's had for Chelsea. He's been a real success for Chelsea and if Chelsea fan you speak to he's a player they love in that midfield but this is a new era under Maurizio Pochettino. It's going to be plenty of incomings and so many outgoings which we'll discuss here throughout the day on Sky Sports News. A few of them going to Saudi Arabia it looks like as well but that central midfield is so key for Chelsea they won't be seeing N'Golo Kante next season and won't be looking at Kovacic next season we'll be looking at Enzo Fernandes, potentially Moise Caicedo if they can agree a deal with Brighton that doesn't look to be going away does it? So real changes for Chelsea but this is a big player and it looks like Manchester City are strengthening their midfield with a player Pep Guardiola will know as you say he's one of the abundance of trophies in England and he knows you can do the job in the Premier League. Yeah I guess the question as well is there seems to be some excitement about a young Brazilian that Chelsea sort of signed in January couldn't play because of his work permit does this open up space for perhaps him to develop and who is this player? Andre Santos. So Chelsea obviously have made a number of signings over the last year under the new ownership and where there's been a few work permit issues as well obviously Chelsea have tried to get that sorted as well so that's exciting for them as well so there's gonna be so much talk and so many incomings with Chelsea over the next few weeks but I mean going back to Kovacic it's some record he's had 142 appearances in the Premier League oh there it is Rob just like magic okay 142 appearances four goals 13 assists but the past completion there as well but he's more than a Mr Reliable isn't he he's been a strong player in that century midfield for Chelsea and I'm sure many supporters will be sad to see him leave uh yeah they certainly will but as you say it's this younger look that Chelsea uh going for now they've freed up his wages there as well as the 30 million incoming um I would think many Chelsea fans are saying does that mean they can perhaps negotiate more with Mason Mount or is that a done deal do you think that he is definitely going? Well I mean there's no no update on the Mason Mount situation as of yet there are reports that it's either Manchester United at the moment if they can't agree a fee of course Chelsea would want him to stay Mircea Pochettino is the kind of manager I would expect I would have expected Mason Mount to love to have played under whether he just wants a new chapter in his career we'll have to wait and see on that one but what we do know is it is going to be so many ins and outs at Stamford Bridge over the next few weeks as Mircea Pochettino moulds his new look side yeah and how many more is the feeling they need to shift out because you were talking about other players perhaps going to to Saudi Arabia as well Koulibaly, Mendy, Hakim Ziyech amongst those mentioned it's a very big squad isn't it and I think that's one thing we were talking about on the football show for the last few months about Chelsea's bloated squad I think the key is as well Robb they're not in European competition and Mircea Pochettino I probably would like to work with 24-25 players there is no Thursday night football there is no Champions League football so keeping certain players happy but as even Frank Lampard mentioned in many of his press conferences to myself and to my colleagues that it was a very very big squad so we'll just wait and see how many we'll see going out but of course Mircea Pochettino will want to bring a few in of his own as well yeah okay just recap that news again then the news the breaking news is Chelsea have agreed to sign Matteo Kovacic more on that as we get it throughout the day but it looks like he is leaving Chelsea and joining Manchester City there we go thank you