Valentin Barco officially joins Chelsea from sister club Strasbourg

[p]The versatile 21-year-old midfielder will join manager [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/alonso-xabi/hAcTWKKN/"]Xabi Alonso[/a] and his new teammates later in pre-season.[/p][embed guid="b06a71c1-c9e2-438f-a8a2-f04e39e4dca2" url="https://x.com/ChelseaFC/status/2083963537727353233?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/barco-valentin/MXX0tUs3/"]Barco[/a] began his career at [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/boca-juniors/hMrWAFH0/"]Boca Juniors[/a], making his professional debut at just 16 after progressing through the club’s academy. [/p][p]He moved to England in 2024 to join [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/brighton/2XrRecc3/"]Brighton[/a], before enjoying loan spells with Sevilla and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/strasbourg/nP6UzIU1/"]Strasbourg[/a].[/p][p]Following an impressive 2024/25 campaign, Barco joined Strasbourg permanently and helped the club secure European football. He contributed to 12 goals in 43 appearances across all competitions last season.[/p][p]His strong club form earned him a place in Argentina’s 2026 FIFA World Cup squad. Barco currently has five international appearances.[/p]