Fulham have sought to bolster their midfield by spending £30m on Southampton’s Shea Charles.
Charles, a Northern Ireland international and breakout star of the last Championship season, is expected to sign a five-year deal at Craven Cottage once a medical assessment and legal formalities are completed.
Fulham will pay an initial fee of £26m, with another £4m dependent on performance, with the size of the fee believed to have ultimately deterred alternative interest from Leeds.
The 22-year-old played 2,000 minutes in the Championship last season as Southampton reached the playoffs before being excluded following revelations of spying against opponents. At Fulham, Charles will be expected to act as the linchpin of the midfield following the sale of Sasa Lukic to Ipswich earlier in the weekend.
Charles joins the young forwards Jonah Kusi-Asare and Gonzalo García as well as 21-year-old attacking midfielder César Palacios on the list of summer signings as Fulham seek to reduce the average age of their squad following the switch of manager from Marco Silva to the former Real Madrid B team coach Álvaro Arbeloa.
Trevoh Chalobah’s move to Como from Chelsea has been confirmed, in a deal worth an initial £25.7m. Terms for a five-year contract were agreed last week, but as the move was announced on Sunday, the England defender said he was “thrilled and honoured” to be joining Cesc Fàbregas’s side.
The pair overlapped at Stamford Bridge towards the end of the Spaniard’s time playing in England, and Chalobah said: “It’s an ambitious, rising project, and working with Cesc Fàbregas again is truly special. I can’t wait to bring my experience to the team, feel the incredible atmosphere at the stadium, and connect with the fans.”
Fàbregas said: “Trevoh is a leader who can raise the level of the team, and I am very happy that he has chosen Como.”
Gustavo Hamer has completed a move from the Championship, this time renewing his relationship with Coventry after leaving Sheffield United for a fee of £6m plus add-ons. The Brazilian-born talent will become the Sky Blues’ sixth signing since returning to the top flight, with two big-ticket deals, £24m goalkeeper Carl Rushworth and £25m Ghanaian international midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi, joining in the last week alone.
Hamer was a key part of Mark Robins’s Coventry side as they reached the FA Cup semi-final and Championship playoff final two years ago, only for the attacking midfielder to then leave the club in a £15m deal with the promoted Blades. Following immediate relegation and a misfiring season last term, Hamer is set to begin a second stint at the CBS Arena, this time under Frank Lampard.
Midfielder Idrissa Gueye has joined Saudi Pro League newcomers Diriyah. The 36-year-old left Everton at the end of last season and arrives at his new club as a free agent. Gueye played in all four of Senegal’s matches at this summer’s World Cup as his country progressed to the last 32.
Elsewhere, Hull completed the signing of the Swedish wing-back Elliot Stroud from Mjallby. The 24-year-old featured in every game for his country at the World Cup and has signed a four-year deal. Reports also continue to link Sporting Lisbon’s centre-half Ousmane Diomande with a £30m move to Nottingham Forest, with the Ivorian international said to be travelling to the UK from Portugal on Sunday in order to complete his medical. Diomande is understood to be the new Forest manager Oliver Glasner’s first-choice signing, and a player seen as having a key role to play in the German’s preferred 3-4-3 setup.
