Chelsea have confirmed that midfielder Mario Pasalic has penned a fresh three-year deal with the club before joining Atalanta BC on loan for the second-straight season. The Croatian helped Atalanta reach the Champions League for the first time last term and he has now been offered with the chance to earn more gametime with the Serie A outfit.

“Mario Pasalic has signed a new contract at Chelsea until 2022 and will now return to Atalanta on loan for a second season. The 24-year-old moved to Stamford Bridge in 2014 from Hajduk Split and has represented Croatia 10 times at senior level, most recently in his country’s 2-1 European Championship qualifying win over Wales and a friendly defeat to Tunisia. Last season he helped Atalanta come third in Serie A, their highest league finish ever. They were also runners-up in the Coppa Italia,” a statement on the club’s website read.

Pasalic has been with the Blues since the summer of 2014 where he joined them from Hajduk Splitn. However, he has not made a single appearance for the west London outfit and his time has been spent on loan with five separate clubs. Among those, he was largely successful with Atalanta last term where he contributed eight goals from the centre of the park and he has now been offered the opportunity to experience Champions League football with the Italian side.

The Blues are not permitted to register any new signings for the summer but they have managed to land the signature of Mateo Kovacic on a permanent basis. The Croatian was already registered with the Blues as part of the loan move last season and the club managed to secure a permanent transfer agreement with Real Madrid before the contract expire on June 30. The 25-year-old may have added midfield duties next season with Ruben Loftus-Cheek sidelined for the year with an Achilles injury.