Stewart will take on the newly-created role of Technical Director focused on global football, while Shields comes in as Co-Director of Recruitment and Talent.

The other Co-Director has yet to be announced.

Stewart has been Technical Director of AS Monaco since June 2020, before which he was the Global Head of Scouting at Red Bull Soccer International.

At Red Bull and now AS Monaco, Stewart has worked closely with Sporting Director Paul Mitchell, who spoke exclusively at a TransferRoom Summit earlier in 2022 about his rebuild of the Ligue 1 club.

Shields only joined Southampton as Head of Senior Recruitment in the summer. He is a former Head of Academy Recruitment and Talent Management at Manchester City.

Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali said: "Laurence is an important appointment as we plan to build a deep sporting team that will collaborate closely. Laurence is a world-class football leader who understands talent management, data and scouting, player development and performance.

"Joe is another great addition to Chelsea, and we’re thrilled to have him on board. We have a clear plan and will adopt a modern and data-driven philosophy, focused on elite emerging talent. We’re assembling a deep and collaborative management team who are eager to build a continued sustained winner at Chelsea. Joe has a great track record and understanding of the game and emerging talent."

Boehly is building a high-profile recruitment department with ex-RB Leipzig Technical Director Christopher Vivell set to join the west London club in the coming months.