Chelsea forward João Félix has completed a loan move to AC Milan until the end of the season.
The Italian club has paid a £5m loan fee for Félix, with no obligation to buy the 25-year-old Portugal international in the summer.
Although the deal was only announced on Tuesday, the necessary paperwork was submitted before Monday’s Serie A and Premier League transfer deadline.
Félix originally joined Chelsea on a £45m permanent deal in August after a previous loan spell at Stamford Bridge during the second half of the 2022-23 season. He signed a seven-year contract with the Blues upon his arrival.
The move came in unusual circumstances as Chelsea and Atlético Madrid effectively exchanged players, with academy graduate Conor Gallagher heading to Spain for £33m.
Chelsea had been in talks to sign Atlético striker Samu Omorodion, but negotiations collapsed. The Félix deal seemingly allowed Atlético to secure the necessary funds to complete the Gallagher transfer.
Gallagher, in the final year of his Chelsea contract, was sold to generate profit and avoid losing him on a free transfer in 2025.
Félix has struggled for regular game time at Chelsea, starting only three Premier League matches this season, though he has been a key player in cup competitions, scoring seven goals.
The Portuguese forward began his career at Benfica before moving to Atlético Madrid for £113m in July 2019—a fee that ranked as the fifth-most expensive transfer in history at the time. He spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Barcelona before returning to Chelsea last summer.
Milan, currently eighth in Serie A, face Roma in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals on Wednesday and have a two-legged play-off against Feyenoord in the Champions League this month.
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