England Under-21s midfielder Nathaniel Chalobah completed his transfer deadline day loan move from Chelsea to Burnley on Monday afternoon and was joined at the club later that evening by international squad-mate and Manchester United defender Michael Keane.
Chalobah, 19, linked up with his Three Lions team-mates on Sunday evening and has signed an initial temporary switch to Turf Moor until January, where he will be looking to make an impression in the Premier League with Sean Dyche’s newly-promoted team.
He has previously enjoyed spells in the Championship with Watford, Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough over the last two seasons so will now be aiming for his top flight debut with the Clarets.
Chalobah has been a regular for England from U16 to Under-21 level
And after signing the relevant paperwork on Sunday evening before his arrival at St. George’s Park for England duty, the formalities were completed on Monday afternoon after Chalobah had trained with Gareth Southgate’s squad, including new Turf Moor team-mate Danny Ings, in the morning.
Speaking about the move, Chalobah said: "I am really excited and looking forward to it.
"The most important thing for me has been to get out on loan and keep learning and improving.
"I’ve done that in the past few years and the next step now has been to get that loan in the Premier League and work from there.
"This is another step up from last season and I’m looking forward to it very much and hoping to improve as a player."
For Keane, it all happened a little later in the day when Burnley and United came to an agreement which will see the 20-year-old central defender join the Clarets on loan.
Dyche travelled to St. George's Park to speak with Keane, who has spent time on loan in the Championship with Leicester City, Derby County and Blackburn Rovers over the last two seasons, and a deal was pushed through after the Lancashire club were granted an extension by the Premier League to complete the necessary paperwork.
Pleased to join @BurnleyOfficial on loan. Looking forward to meeting my new teammates after international duty
— Nathaniel Chalobah (@chalobah) September 1, 2014
Chalobah has been a regular for England at all levels from U16s through to the Under-21s over the last five years, during which time he won the Euro U17 title in 2010 and reached Euro semi-finals at both U17 and U19 level in 2011 and 2012.
Keane was first involved with England as an U19 international in 2012, helping Noel Blake's squad to the Euro semi-final in Estonia after previously representing Republic Of Ireland at U17 level. He has been a virtual ever-present for Southgate's Under-21s since last summer, scoring three goals in the qualifying campaign so far.
The pair will link-up with the Clarets for the first time after England's games with Lithuania on Friday 5 September and Moldova on Tuesday 9 September and could be in line to make their debuts against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park the following weekend, just a few miles from where Chalobah grew up.
Deadline day also saw moves for Under-21s defender Zeki Fryers, who joined Crystal Palace from Tottenham Hotspur on a permanent deal and Nick Powell, who signed a season-long loan at Leicester City from Manchester United.
