Chelsea beat Arsenal to sign defender from Ajax

Chelsea have officially unveiled Jorrel Hato from Dutch club Ajax as their newest signing.

The Blues in a recent announcement disclosed that the defender has signed a long-term contract to 2032.

Chelsea are said to have paid the sum of £35.5m plus add-ons of £3m for Hato, and Ajax also have a sell-on clause included in the deal.

The Blues beat Arsenal to sign the defender.

Recall that the North London club already had Hato on their target list in January 2024.

However, at that time Hato’s contract with Ajax was close to expiring. He ok would go on to pen a 5-year contract with the Dutch club.

Arsenal were much less determined to sign him after that, though there were still rumours they could revive interest this summer, but they ended up signing Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia for £13m instead.

Reacting to his transfer to Stamford Bride, the defender said, “I’m very excited, I’m so happy to be here.

“I thought a lot about my future and wanted to take the next step in my career. Chelsea is the best place for me to do that so I’m very happy.”