Chelsea have agreed a £117m deal with Aston Villa for Morgan Rogers.
A move to Chelsea is set to come after Arsenal made Rogers their top forward target this summer - and a Gunners approach to Villa was expected after the World Cup had finished.
However, Arsenal were unwilling to go to that price and Rogers is set to join Chelsea - giving up Champions League football with Villa or Arsenal next season to play for a team without European football at all.
Rogers is expected to sign a six-year contract at Chelsea with the option of another year. He's due to undergo a medical on Monday after he returns from America after England's World Cup campaign.
Rogers will become the most expensive British player - after the record had already been broken this summer after Man City paid £116m for his England team-mate Elliot Anderson.
He is also set to become Chelsea's record signing, overtaking the £115m the Blues paid Brighton for Moises Caicedo in 2023.
The 23-year-old scored 14 goals and added 11 assists in 55 appearances for Villa last season.
Since joining from Middlesbrough in a deal worth £16m in 2024, Rogers has quickly risen from young prospect to a fully-fledged England international, with 21 caps to his name already.
He made five of those appearances during the 2026 World Cup and provided the assist to Anthony Gordon during England's semi-final defeat to Argentina.
Villa's nightmare summer window: 'Gut punch, after gut punch'
Sky Sports' Lewis Jones:
Aston Villa should have been attacking this summer from a position of strength. Champions League football secured with a fourth-place finish. European silverware in the cabinet. A manager in Unai Emery who had every reason to believe the foundations had finally been laid for Villa to become genuine top-four regulars.
Instead, the early movement in this window has lurched towards nightmare territory.
Youri Tielemans, the metronome of Emery's midfield and arguably the team's most influential player over the last 18 months, has headed to Manchester United. Paris Saint-Germain are expected to activate Lucas Digne's release clause after the World Cup, stripping Villa of one of the Premier League's most reliable attacking full-backs.
And now comes the biggest gut punch of them all.
Rogers, Villa's standout performer and the face of the club's exciting future, is on the verge of joining Chelsea in what would be a record sale.
You are looking at a squad being ripped apart.
What must Emery be thinking?
His message after lifting the Europa League trophy was clear. This was not the end point. Villa had to build from here. The momentum had to be maintained. Instead, the project appears to be moving backwards.
Johan Manzambi is expected to arrive and there is plenty to like about his potential, but potential does not replace proven Premier League quality overnight.
Emery has built a reputation on solving problems others cannot. But even the best managers need stability. He is staring at the prospect of reconstructing the spine of his team while competing on multiple fronts.
He has worked miracles before. He may need to produce his greatest one yet.
The ex-Man City youth players Chelsea have signed since Boehly takeover
Rogers would be the seventh former Man City youth player to sign for Chelsea since the new takeover.
The person responsibly for all these former City player signings is Chelsea's co-director of recruitment and talent Joe Shields.
Shields used to work as Man City's head of academy recruitment and talent management, working alongside former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, who was head of City's Elite Development Squad Coach, essentially the club's Under-21s side.
Morgan Rogers - summer of 2026* - £117m
Jamie Gittens - summer of 2025, £51.5m
Liam Delap - summer of 2025, £30m
Jadon Sancho - summer of 2024, loan
Tosin Adarabioyo - summer of 2024, free
Romeo Lavia - summer of 2023, £58m
Cole Palmer - summer of 2023, £40m
Total spend: £296.5m
More to follow...
Fuzcinpz
0
Thank God we no later sign him to expensive floop
Pain is that yoouuuu🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Blinksclinton1997
1
See Arsenal Manchester United Liverpool Manchester City, get ready for the revenge 😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 The premier League is coming to Chelsea again.
Membdelsy
1
chelseafc
Iffy10G
1
This below average player is called €117m
zewademnrs
0
Lazekmprty
0
kwisha ww😂
Fibdiklmsu
0
with all this British record signing Arsenal will still beat you h/a next season
Beat us an loose to psg in the final, failure is that you ? Zero champions league
cakbekmnpt
2
Elliott Anderson st £130M is from where?
nomaeksyz
4
Richrocky
0
with all this British record signing Arsenal will still beat you h/a next season
Pain is that you 😂
Coyblopt
3
EPL teams always inflating amount when it comes to English players
Dapacdmort
0
Dapacdmort
1
Fuodnpuy
0
with all this British record signing Arsenal will still beat you h/a next season
Sitdekloy
1
Immaculate003
3
Rogers has developed into a fine player with improved performance over the years but this signing fee is outrageous. The EPL and British players have blown away the transfer market. I wonder what signing fees will be in a season or two 🤷♂️🤷♂️. Imagine signing Haaland, Mbappe, Vini and the likes! Teams are going to rob the Bank of America/IMF.
Renabcdprs
0
rogers not an arsenal target they fool you chlsea fans lik mudryk
How can you show stupidity in public after hearing he has been Arsenal no 1 target since .olodo
Caebiklmp
1
very good
Mitchello2
2
117 for this guy. My God what is English transfer market becoming. Usually u got world beaters for 100 mil
Sadaeimnsz
0
bro this one off me you say it is not my money de get money?? okay even with Caicedo and Enzo were are we today
won club world cup, European Conference league, Created and broke some records.
resabekpst
2
Thankfully he isn’t coming to Arsenal for he’s a No10, we have Odegaard, Eze, Nwaneri and Dowman. We need a natural left winger. He definitely isn’t a winger. Thankfully he’s gone. Now we can target a genuine left winger.
emma23
1
He is too expensive anyway, but the club is not looking at the price but what they are going to sell and recover the money, they have enough to sell
Oscarzubby
0
Chelsea sign Caicedo and Enzo as well for higher fee, you win some and loose some, it’s not your money. Just wait for the new team.
bro this one off me you say it is not my money de get money?? okay even with Caicedo and Enzo were are we today
Decimus
0
after spending 97.5M on Lukaku how much did Chelsea recover nothing 88.5m on Mudryk where is Mudryk today Rogers for 117m and england can't win world cup can't move balls can't control ball can't hold ball only Kai Havertz wining the champions League
Chelsea sign Caicedo and Enzo as well for higher fee, you win some and loose some, it’s not your money. Just wait for the new team.
Voyelrsuyz
1
rogers not an arsenal target they fool you chlsea fans lik mudryk
Njungdavid
1
English men transfers are so annoying.
Oscarzubby
0
after spending 97.5M on Lukaku how much did Chelsea recover nothing 88.5m on Mudryk where is Mudryk today Rogers for 117m and england can't win world cup can't move balls can't control ball can't hold ball only Kai Havertz wining the champions League
Juyemnrsz
2
I love this 🤩
Robbdirtu
0
I will be very sorry for him coming next season no CHAMPION'S league no European cup no Conference cup
sesacdipuy
3
Morgan Rogers. please toire down Chelsea lf Arsenal gree British record £117m
niociklr
1
Thank God we no later sign him to expensive floop
gudiest01
1
FFP Looking at Chelsea
Wisaeknp
3
Oscarzubby
2
with all the British record still england team can't move balls can't control ball can't hold ball can't win world cup
Jiuakmnrsu
2
It's cold this season ❄️❄️❄️❄️🥶🥶🥶🥶
Oscarzubby
0
that always the things British knows about but can't win world cup can't move balls can't control ball can't hold ball
riwcloptuy
1
chembahassan
1
😂😂😂arsenal were are you