Ross Barkley's agent was paid around £7m for his part in the midfielder's recent move from Everton to Chelsea, according to a report.

The England international officially joined the Premier League champions last week in a £15m deal, five months after a deadline-day switch - rumoured to be worth £35m - collapsed.

Barkley's Stamford Bridge arrival was hailed as a 'bargain' by new teammate Gary Cahill, but The Times suggests that the fee was effectively £22m as Chelsea also gave a substantial sum to the man who helped broker the deal.

Figures in the same report claim that Mino Raiola, the agent of Paul Pogba, was paid £41m to push through the French midfielder's move from Juventus to Manchester United in 2016.

Previous rules in place by governing body FIFA, abolished in 2015, restricted agents to no more than three per cent of the value of any transfer.