Chelsea close to signing Kalidou Koulibaly on a four-year deal

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By Martin Graham | 14th Jul 2022

Chelsea have agreed to terms with Napoli over the signing of Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly. The Africa Cup of Nations winner will pen a four-year deal with the Blues.

The rebuilding at Stamford Bridge is ongoing, and it seems Todd Boedhly has a hang of these things. The American who took over the reins at Chelsea is personally overseeing the business at the club and has been jetting around looking to sign players.

Chelsea have gone about their business in the market, looking to fill the blank spaces and put the team in good stead for next season. They’re gradually mitigating the loss of some of their players. With Antonio Rudiger off to Real Madrid, Andreas Christensen to Barcelona and Romelu Lukaku on loan at Inter Milan, the Blues need new personnel.

The moves Todd Boehly is making in the market have started to yield dividends, and the new Chelsea is taking shape. The Blues are on the verge of forgetting the pain of losing Antonio Rudiger with a tried and tested defender. Chelsea are close to signing Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibally after agreeing to a deal with Napoli.

Koulibally to join Chelsea

With Chelsea shorn of personnel at the back and needing replacements, Todd Boehly wasted no time in getting busy. The American owner has traversed the continent looking for players that can deliver silverware to the west London club. Raheem Sterling is in the bag, but Chelsea need defensive reinforcements, and the search is almost over.

The Blues are close to signing Senegal captain and Africa Cup of Nations winner Kalidou Koulibally. The move comes after an agreement between Chelsea and Napoli. Koulibally will put pen to paper on a four-year deal.

The 31-year-old jetted into London on Wednesday for his medicals ahead of the final documentation of the move. Koulibally will join the rest of the team in the United States after the deal.

Other reinforcements for the club

The first player to sign for Chelsea this summer is Raheem Sterling. The England international completed a deal to join Chelsea for £47.5 million. The former Manchester City forward will now fight for regular playing time denied him at Manchester City.

After the successful signing of Sterling, the Blues will return to Man City as they eye another of their players. Nathan Ake has barely had a look in with the Citizens, and Chelsea could capitalize on that to land the defender. Reports suggest the west London club is close to agreeing on terms with Man City for the transfer of the Dutch defender.

The arrival of Ake and Koulibally would mitigate the summer loss of Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen.

Koulibally was the subject of interest from several Premier League sides. The Senegal defender joined Napoli from Genk in 2014, and after 317 appearances for Napoli, where he acquitted himself very well, he is on his way to Chelsea.

Chelsea are perfecting their strategies for next season at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Koulibally would join the team in either LA or Las Vegas.

Thomas Tuchel would lead his boys against Charlotte FC in Charlotte on Wednesday, 20 July, before taking on Arsenal in Orlando on 23 July.

Raheem Sterling could be available for the Blues when they take on Club America in their first tour match in Las Vegas on Saturday.