Done deal: Koulibaly set for Chelsea medical
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Napoli accept Chelsea’s bid for Kalidou Koulibaly as defender flies to London
© Provided by Metro The Senegalese defender will now undergo a medical (Picture: Getty) Chelsea and Napoli have agreed a deal for Kalidou Koulibaly and the defender will fly to London on Wednesday evening to complete his move, according to reports. The Blues were closing in on a £33.8million swoop on Tuesday evening and have now come to a complete agreement with Napoli, with an official announcement expected by the end of the week at the latest. According to Sky Sport Italia’s Gianluca Di Marzio, ‘contracts have been exchanged’ between all parties and Koulibaly is now waiting for a flight to London. The 31-year-old will undergo the first part of his medical either once he lands or on Thursday morning before putting pen to paper on a long-term contract. Initial reports had suggested Koulibaly would receive a three-year deal with the option for a fourth, but Italian sources claim he will actually sign a five-year deal. The Senegal international only had one year left on his previous contract with Napoli and will now take home around £160,000-a-week at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea will pay €38m (£32.1m) – which will be paid in two instalments – in addition to a further €2m (£1.7m) in bonuses. © Provided by Metro Koulibaly had entered the final year of his Napoli contract (Picture: Getty) The decision to hand Koulibaly a long-term deal marks a huge departure from the Roman Abramovich era, where players over the age of 30 were only given short-term contracts. But manager Thomas Tuchel has been desperate to add an experienced defender to his backline after losing Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen and new co-owner Todd Boehly has backed his manager. Napoli are already thinking about life after Koulibaly and have two targets lined up as potential replacements. The first is South Korean centre-back Kim Min-Jae, who currently plays for Fenerbahce, and the other option is Lazio defender Francesco Acerbi. Napoli’s official radio station Radio Kiss Kiss, meanwhile, claim club president Aurelio De Laurentiis is ‘furious’ with Koulibaly and his agent over the transfer, having expected the defender to sign an extension only for him to reject it – forcing Napoli to sell. Koulibaly may not be the only new centre-back to move to Stamford Bridge this summer, with Tuchel also keen to bring in Nathan Ake from Manchester City as well as PSG’s Presnel Kimpembe. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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