Fulham land Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe on five-year deal

Fulham have bolstered their ranks with the signing of midfielder Emile Smith Rowe from Arsenal for an undisclosed fee.

England international Smith Rowe has agreed a five-year contract at Craven Cottage, with the option to extend the deal by a further 12 months.

The 24-year-old joined Arsenal's academy at the age of 10 and progressed through the ranks to make 115 senior appearances for the Gunners in all competitions.

"I'm finally here, so I'm really happy for me and my family â- it's a good moment," he told FFCtv.

"I'm really excited, I just wanted to get here as quickly as possible so I could get going with my team-mates.

"Listening to the project, speaking to the manager (Marco Silva) and seeing what players we have here already, I think it's an exciting project for me and definitely the perfect step for my career going forward."

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta praised Smith Rowe's commitment and attitude, adding on his club's website: "I'm sad that Emile is leaving us but excited for him to take this new opportunity at this stage of his career, when he needs to be starting matches and playing regularly."

Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos has rejoined Strasbourg on a season-long loan after making 11 appearances for the Ligue 1 side during the second half of last season.

The 20-year-old, who is yet to feature in the first team at Stamford Bridge since signing from Vasco da Gama in January 2023, had an unsuccessful spell at Nottingham Forest during the 2023-24 season, cut short after he played just twice in five months.

He made a single Premier League appearance for Forest â- as a substitute against Liverpool at Anfield last October â- before what was due to have been a year's loan was terminated by Chelsea in January.

That paved the way for a more-successful move to Strasbourg, another club in Blues owners BlueCo's portfolio. He scored once as the team, who are now managed by Liam Rosenior, finished 13th in Ligue 1.

He became a full Brazil international in March 2023, making his debut in a friendly against Morocco.

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