Joao Felix Ditches Chelsea to Reunite with Cristiano Ronaldo in Stunning Move

Chelsea have officially announced the exit of Portuguese striker João Félix, who has secured a permanent transfer to Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr.

Félix had been seeking a return to his previous club Benfica, with the Portuguese outfit showing interest in completing the transfer, but Benfica couldn't meet Chelsea's valuation requirements, allowing Al Nassr to capitalize on the opportunity.

In a transfer reportedly endorsed by Cristiano Ronaldo, Al Nassr moved quickly to finalize agreements with both Chelsea and Félix. The 25-year-old was already seen participating in training sessions with his new team earlier this week.

The transfer has now been officially announced, with Chelsea saying goodbye to Félix after just one campaign following his permanent signing at Stamford Bridge.

Al Nassr are understood to have paid an upfront fee of €30 million (£26.1 million, $34.9 million), with substantial performance-related bonuses potentially bringing Chelsea an additional €20 million (£17.4 million, $23.2 million) in the future.

Including the modest loan fee received when Félix moved to AC Milan during the latter half of last season, the Blues could now generate a profit on a player who cost £45 million ($60.2 million) when acquired from Atlético Madrid last summer.

Expectations were moderately optimistic for Félix, who had spent the second half of the 2022–23 campaign on loan at Chelsea, but he found it difficult to establish himself under Enzo Maresca, beginning only three Premier League matches in the season's opening months.

He was loaned to Milan in January but couldn't make a significant impact, and it soon became evident that Félix would return to Chelsea while seeking new opportunities elsewhere.

Félix departs west London having featured in 40 matches during his two periods with the club, recording 11 goals and two assists.