Chelsea in small dig at Brighton after Cucurella joins Blues in £62m transfer

Chelsea have completed the signing of Marc Cucurella for over £60m and couldn't resist a little inquiry at Brighton after they announced the deal.

The left-back has agreed a six-year deal and could make his Blues debut on Saturday against Everton.

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Manchester City were keen on the Spain international, with his interest encouraging Cucurella to submit a transfer request, but they were put off by the Seagulls' asking price, which was rumored to be £50m.

But Chelsea swooped in and paid £55m for the 24-year-old, with a potential additional £7m.

And the Chelsea Twitter admin jibed Brighton after the announcement, repeating the format of his tweet earlier in the week, denying reports a deal had been agreed.

And yet, Cucurella is now a Chelsea player, as confirmed by these funny guys who manage the social networks of the Blues.

They tweeted: 'CLUB STATEMENT: MARC CUCURELLA. Following extensive media reports this week, we can confirm that an agreement has been reached with Brighton and Hove Albion for the signing of Marc Cucurella.'

The Barcelona academy graduate follows the arrivals of Raheem Sterling from Man City (£47.5m), Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli (£33m), Gabriel Slonina from Chicago Fire (£12m pounds) and Aston Villa's Carney Chukwuemeka (£20m). for a total outlay of £172m to date, with further additions expected.

Cucurella will compete for minutes at left-back with Ben Chilwell, but manager Thomas Tuchel claims his new signing offers versatility across the backline.

"It helps [fit-again] Ben to escape the pressure of 'I have to deliver and we absolutely need you now,'" Tuchel said.

"We also have Marcos Alonso and Emerson but Marc is the option in this position and he can play very well in the last three. He has the profile of Azpi (Cesar Azpilicueta) with a left foot. He gives us lots of options.

"Ben is very ambitious, he was looking forward to getting back to team training. It seems like he needs a bit more time to adjust to the pace and physics of the game itself , which is normal. It's a demanding league, and we have to watch out for him and not throw him away."

Levi Colwill has joined Brighton on a season-long loan from Chelsea, following a successful spell with Huddersfield last season.

Brighton boss Graham Potter said: "Levi has huge potential and has already shown his ability last season in the Championship and with England at various age levels up to the Under-21s .

"I really look forward to working with him on the training ground and in games during the season.

"He mainly plays at centre-back, but has also played on the left as a full-back, and he is a player who is comfortable on the ball."