Joao Pedro joins Chelsea and could feature in Club World Cup

Joao Pedro could play in Chelsea's Club World Cup quarter-final with Palmeiras after completing his move from Brighton.

The Brazil forward has signed an eight-year contract in a deal worth £60m.

The 23-year-old flew from his homeland to the United States to undergo a medical and is now available to play against Palmeiras (02:00 BST) on Saturday in Philadelphia.

The Fluminense youth product scored 30 goals in 70 games for Brighton after joining from Watford in 2023 for just under £30m, which at the time was a club-record fee.

"Everyone knows this is a big club with a great history," said Pedro. "They had brilliant players in the past and have brilliant players now, so I am excited to join and you know when you are a Chelsea player you must think one thing - win."

Chelsea have also had a £55m bid for English winger Jamie Gittens accepted by Borussia Dortmund.

But the 20-year-old would be unable to play for the Blues in the Club World Cup because he has already appeared in the tournament for Dortmund.

Liam Delap, Mamadou Sarr and Dario Essugo joined Chelsea before the tournament and were all registered in time for the group stage.

Brighton's head coach Fabian Hurzeler said: "This is a good move for all parties. It's an excellent deal for the club, and a good return on a significant investment in an area of the pitch where we have a lot of competition and are already well served in terms of our attacking talent.

"It's also an exciting move for Joao - it gives him the opportunity to play Champions League football this coming season, and he will of course be keen to cement his position in the Brazil team before the World Cup next summer."

Chelsea have already assembled a big squad, with a value heading north of £1.4bn, and teenagers Kendry Paez, Estevao Willian and Mike Penders will join the club this summer having already agreed moves to Stamford Bridge.

By buying younger players on lower wages and spreading the payments over long-term contracts, Chelsea's strategy is to unearth new stars and sell on unwanted talent for a profit.

But their ability to further bolster their ranks may be determined by the Premier League's response to the sale of their women's team to parent company BlueCo for £198.7m - a process that put the wider business into profit.

"If this is accepted by the Premier League, then Chelsea would have significant spending flexibility and another £200m is a possibility," football finance expert Kieran Maguire told BBC Sport earlier this month.

"If it is excluded, then things will be far more challenging and they may have to sell before buying."

Chelsea's finances will be boosted by playing in next season's Champions League, while they are set to receive more than £50m for their Club World Cup run.