Chelsea
Confirmed: Chelsea Announce Sixth Summer Signing On 4-Year-Deal
Chelsea have confirmed on their official website the signing of Senegalese international defender Papy Djilobodji from French outfit Nantes.
Deadline day has finally arrived and managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads for the new season, so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Chelsea complete the signing of Papy Djilobodji…
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Chelsea have confirmed on Chelseafc.com the signing of Senegalese international defender Papy Djilobodji from Nantes on a four-year contract.
Jose Mourinho has been tipped to bring in another centre-back this summer but has been frustrated in his attempts to sign Everton star John Stones in recent weeks.
It looks like the Blues boss has been forced to turn to alternative targets and news broke on Monday night that the West Londoners were closing in on a surprise deal to sign Nantes star Papy Djilobodji.
Chelsea have now confirmed the signing of their official website with the 26-year-old Senegalese international penning a four-year contract at Stamford Bridge.
After completing the move, Djilobodji told Chelseafc.com:
‘I’m very happy to sign for a big club like Chelsea and I want to do my best to help the team win titles. I want to thank the club for giving me this opportunity.’
No official transfer fee has been disclosed by either club but the BBC claim the deal is believed to be worth around £4million and he becomes Chelsea’s sixth major signing of the summer window following the arrivals of Asmir Begovic, Pedro, Baba Rahman, Danilo Pantic and Radamel Falcao.
Djilobodji has been a mainstay at the heart of the Nantes defence since joining the club in 2010 and has developed into one of the best centre-backs in Ligue 1 over the past two years.
The defender is known to have a strong physical presence and is also gifted with excellent pace so hopefully he should have no trouble adapting to the Premier League, and while he’s predominantly a centre-back, Djilobodji is also capable of playing as a defensive midfielder when needed, so his versatility will come in useful to Jose Mourinho.
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I doubt he’ll be able to force his way past the likes of Gary Cahill or John Terry just yet but he’ll provide solid back-up for now and has the ability to develop his game further before challenging for a first team place.
