Kalidou Koulibaly flying to London and will complete medical on THURSDAY as Chelsea agree £34m transfer with Napoli
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CHELSEA are on the verge of securing their second summer signing with Kalidou Koulibaly heading to London to complete his medical.
The Blues are closing in on a £34million transfer for the Napoli central defender as they look to plug the holes left by Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen.
Koulibaly, 31, only has one year left on his contract in Italy but the Serie A club, for whom he has played over 300 times, are ready to sell after initially rejecting Chelsea’s first offer of £27m.
However, after the Premier League giants increased that, the Senegal star is due to earn about £8m a year - £150,000 a week - at Stamford Bridge.
He will have a medical on Thursday and will then have to complete his paperwork before a decision is made on whether he meets Thomas Tuchel and the rest of Chelsea squad in Los Angeles or Las Vegas.
He could feature in his first game for the Blues in Vegas on Saturday when they take on Mexican outfit Club America.
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And should everything go as planned, he will become the second arrival following confirmation that Raheem Sterling has signed from Manchester City for £50m.
The 27-year-old England forward arrives on a five-year contract, with the option of a further year, in a deal worth up to £50m.
Sterling, who will earn £300k per week, is understood to be training with the squad today having completed his own medical in London before jetting out and the forward could also feature against Club America.
Both Koulibaly and Sterling are the first signings of new owner Todd Boehly’s era at Stamford having taken over from Roman Abramovich earlier this year.
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American businessman Boehly played a key role in both deals, and is working to bring in more new faces to rebuild Tuchel’s squad.
Skipper Cesar Azpilicueta and full-back Marcos Alonso could also be departing, but have been told more signings need to be made before they leave.
Chelsea remain linked with defenders Jules Kounde from Sevilla and Presnel Kimpembe from PSG.