Kevin de Bruyne has left Chelsea for Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg for an undisclosed fee.
Unconfirmed reports in Germany claim the Weserstadion club have coughed out around £16.7m.
The 22-year-old, who spent the whole of last season on loan at Werder Bremen, has signed a five-year deal with Wolfsburg.
The Belgian scored 10 goals in 33 appearances for Bremen last season. He has started just five matches with the ‘Blues’ since joining from KRC Genk in January 2012 and loaned back to the Belgian club for the remainder of the 2011/12 season.
“Chelsea thanks Kevin for his services and wishes him well at his new club,” said a Chelsea statement.
Chelsea recently re-signed Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matic from Benfica for £21m.
“It was clear from the start that Wolfsburg would be the first team I talk to if Chelsea gave me permission,” said de Bruyne.
“That’s why I’m very happy that this transfer has been completed. Klaus Allofs and Dieter Hecking are building a very good team at VfL with a lot of potential.
I want to play my part, make sure we continue to be successful, and return to the international stage.”
De Bruyne, who came through the youth ranks of the Belgium teams, has scored four goals in 18 appearances for the national team.
