Gallagher was waiting in Madrid for his move to be finalised before returning to the UK as the deal was initially called off.
The 24-year-old had met Atletico chiefs, players and even had a tour of the Metropolitano stadium before being shipped back to West London.
But the deal fell into limbo when Chelsea ended their pursuit of Atletico forward Samu Omorodion, after he failed his medical.
With Diego Simeone ‘s side needing to raise funds in order to complete the deal, Gallagher was sent to train with the Chelsea ‘bomb squad’.
But now his Atletico deal is back on after Chelsea signed their winger Joao Felix for an undisclosed fee on Monday.
Gallagher was ordered to return to Madrid on Tuesday evening to finally complete a move away from his boyhood club.
He was filmed signing autographs and taking pictures with airport staff upon his arrival at the airport.
The England international is set to sign a five-year deal worth £35.8m at the Stadio Metropolitano, including an undisclosed sell-on fee.
FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS
With an agreement already in place the move is expected to be officially unveiled in the coming days.
Chelsea finalised terms to make Portuguese forward Felix their ninth senior signing of the summer on Monday.
In doing so, funds were freed up for Gallagher to head the other way.
Gallagher will become the second England international ever to play for Atletico, following his Three Lions team-mate Kieran Trippier .
He has made 95 appearances in all competitions for the Blues after joining the club at the age of eight.
With Reece James ruled out through injury, the midfielder regularly deputised as captain last term as they recovered from a dismal start under Mauricio Pochettino to secure European football.
Under new boss Enzo Maresca however, Gallagher’s long-term future at the club appeared much less certain.
His Chelsea deal is set to expire in June 2025 and he turned down two contract extensions, opening up the move to Atletico.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Comments / 0