Shea Charles is set to undergo a medical at Fulham on Monday after a deal that could reach £30million was agreed with Southampton. Fulham will pay an upfront fee of £26m with a further £4m in performance-related add-ons also included. The 22-year-old is set to sign a five-year contract at the west London club in a move that would make him the most expensive Northern Irish footballer ever.
The deal, as reported in today's Mail on Sunday, is understood to be £27m plus a further £3m and the final go-ahead for Fulham was held up as they had to wait for clearance from Manchester City who had matching rights. Charles joined Southampton from Manchester City in the summer of 2023 and has made 76 appearances for the Championship club, either side of a loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday in the 2024-25 season. The 2025-26 campaign saw the midfielder score six times and provide two assists across 38 matches as Southampton reached the second tier’s play-offs with a fourth-place finish.
Charles scored in the semi-final victory against Middlesbrough before Tonda Eckert’s side was expelled from contention by the English Football League for attempting to spy on their opponents.
Earlier this summer, the Championship club had rejected multiple bids, exceeding £20m, from Leeds United for the central midfielder. Charles, who started his career at Manchester City, also attracted interest from Leeds United but has opted to move to west London to replace Sasa Lukic following his move to Ipswich Town last week. He becomes Fulham's third signing since the appointment of new manager Alvaro Arbeloa after his spell leading Real Madrid on an interim basis during the second half of last season.
Fulham have already completed the signings of striker Gonzalo Garcia and midfielder Cesar Palacios from Real Madrid for a combined fee of €50m (£42.9m; $57.4m). Earlier this week, Fulham midfielder Sasa Lukic completed a medical ahead of joining newly-promoted Ipswich Town.
The midfielder is the brother of Northern Ireland goalkeeper Pierce Charles, who re-joined Manchester City earlier this summer from Sheffield Wednesday and has subsequently moved on loan to Queens Park Rangers.