Croatian midfielder Danilo Pantic 'signed contract with Chelsea in June'

Midfield talent Danilo Pantic says he signed a four-year deal with Chelsea in June, prior to joining Vitesse Arnhem on loan.

Pantic, 18, played for Partizan Belgrade last season. In January he claimed in an interview with Mozzart Sport he was on the brink of securing a move to Stamford Bridge.

No deal transpired however and until recently, it was uncertain where the player would end up, having reached the end of his contract with the Serbian giants.

Eredivisie side Vitesse however confirmed on Monday 13 July the Serbia Under-19 international had begun training with the club having arrived on a loan deal. And in an interview with VitesseTV, Pantic says he finalised a deal with Chelsea before making the move to Netherlands.

"I signed a contract with Chelsea in June but I am now on loan with Vitesse and am I very happy. This is a very good experience for me."

Pantic becomes the fourth Chelsea player to link up with Vitesse ahead of the 2015-16 season. Lewis Baker, Izzy Brown and Brazilian starlet Nathan, who signed for Chelsea just last month, have already joined the Dutch side as part of their continued relationship with the Premier League giants.

As was the case last season, a raft of Chelsea players have already left Stamford Bridge on loan. In addition to the Vitesse quartet, Thomas Kalas has completed a loan switch to Championship side Middlesbrough, with fellow defender Andreas Christensen having already left to join Borussia Monchengladbach on a temporary deal. Marco van Ginkel joined Stoke City for the season in a deal that helped Chelsea bring Asmir Begovic to west London.

Lucas Piazon is also expected to leave the club again following a spell at Eintracht Frankfurt last year.