Chelsea set Maxence Lacroix medical as £52m Crystal Palace transfer being finalised

Chelsea are closing in on signing Crystal Palace defender Maxence Lacroix with the Frenchman set for a medical ahead of putting pen-to-paper on a long-term contract

Chelsea are in the process of finalising a £52million deal to sign Crystal Palace defender Maxence Lacroix.

Lacroix, 26, who made three appearances for France at the World Cup, is scheduled to undergo a medical on Friday before signing a six-year deal that will see him contracted to the Blues until 2032, according to The Athletic.

Should Lacroix sign, as expected, he would become the Blues' seventh summer signing, after Morgan Rogers, Marco Palestra, Geovany Quenda, Denner, Dastan Satpaev and Emmanuel Emegha arrived through the doors.

The Frenchman emerged as the Blues' top centre-back target at the start of the summer transfer window, with three others being considered including Como's Jacobo Ramon and ex-Manchester City defender John Stones.

But Chelsea have since pressed ahead with a deal for Lacroix following another impressive season at Palace, where he was an integral part of their Conference League win. In total, he made 55 appearances across all competitions, scoring three goals and registering three assists.

He started the season alongside Marc Guehi and Chris Richards in a back-three in the Community Shield and ended it next to Chadi Riad and Jaydee Canvot in the Conference League triumph over Rayo Vallecano.

Lacroix's performances earned him a place in the 26-man France squad for the World Cup alongside teammate Jean-Philippe Mateta and former Palace forward Michael Olise.

Palace signed Lacroix from Wolfsburg for £15m in 2024 and he has made 98 appearances in two seasons for the Eagles, helping them to win three trophies in the process.

Chelsea have been in the market for a new centre-back since the end of last season with the futures of Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana, Trevoh Chalobah and Mamadou Sarr being considered.

The Blues have already sold Andrey Santos to Manchester United, Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid, Tyrique George to Everton for a combined £112m before Alejandro Garnacho was loaned to Aston Villa on Thursday.

Speaking to club media, Emery expressed his delight with the move. The Aston Villa boss said: "We are delighted with Alejandro. He is so talented, young, and he showed us his wish to help our project. We are really happy."