Chelsea sign Koulibaly on four-year deal

By AFP
July 17, 2022

LONDON: Senegal international defender Kalidou Koulibaly has signed a four-year deal with Chelsea from Serie A club Napoli, the Premier League club said on Saturday.

The 31-year-old Senegal captain becomes the second signing after Manchester City striker Raheem Sterling since Todd Boehly’s consortium bought the club.

“I’m very happy to be here with this team at Chelsea,” said Koulibaly.

“It’s a big team in the world and my dream was always to play in the Premier League. Chelsea came first to get me in 2016 but we didn’t make it. Now when they came to me I accepted it because they really wanted me to come to the Premier League to play for them.

“When I spoke to my good friends Edou (Mendy) and Jorginho they made my choice easier.”

Koulibaly, who led Senegal to the African Cup of Nations title earlier this year, joined Napoli from Genk in 2014 and made 317 appearances for the Italian side.