New Chelsea signing Mario Pasalic is thrilled to be following in the footsteps of his hero Frank Lampard.
The Blues confirmed the capture of the 19-year-old attacking midfielder from Hajduk Split this afternoon and he will join his new team-mates for pre-season training today.
Pasalic enjoyed a breakthrough year at Split last term and scored 11 times in 36 appearances to help his club secure a third-place finish in the Croatian League.
That goalscoring instinct could come from years of watching Lampard, who left Chelsea this summer , banging them in at Stamford Bridge.
Lampard is the teenager’s favourite player and will be looking to replicate some of the success the England international had during his time in SW6.
Pasalic said: “I am very happy because I am now a Chelsea player. I am very impressed by the training ground and I must thank everybody at Hajduk.
“This is now a new start in my career.
“I am a central midfielder, my favourite player is Frank Lampard, and so I am very happy to be a Chelsea player.”
Pasalic will spend the next few days working hard on the training ground but is likely to be sent out on loan for the forthcoming campaign.
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