England international Raheem Sterling yesterday became Chelsea’s first signing since Todd Boehly’s consortium bought the club, ending his successful spell at Manchester City. The 27-year-old forward signed a five year contract for a fee reported to be £50mn ($59mn).
“England star Raheem Sterling has joined Chelsea from Manchester City on a five-year contract,” said the buying club in a statement on their website. Sterling had pre-empted his move earlier yesterday by posting a goodbye message on social media saying he left City as a “man” having arrived from Liverpool as a 20-year-old.
However, once the signing became official Sterling – who is with Chelsea on their pre-season tour of the United States – turned his attention to what he hopes to achieve under Thomas Tuchel.
“I’ve obviously achieved a lot in my career so far, but there is still so much more to achieve and I’m really looking forward to doing that in a Chelsea shirt, under Thomas’s management,” he said in a statement.
“London is my home and where it all started for me, and it’s amazing I now have the opportunity to play in front of friends and family week in, week out at Stamford Bridge.”
Sterling, capped 77 times, won four Premier League titles among nine major trophies since joining City from Liverpool in 2015.
A key player in the early years of Pep Guardiola’s reign at City, Sterling scored 131 goals in 337 appearances for the English champions.
However, his regular place in the starting line-up at City came increasingly under threat from the signing of Jack Grealish for a Premier League record £100mn last year, plus the emergence of Phil Foden from the club’s academy. Sterling went on to win both the league title and League Cup four times as well as one FA Cup with City.
Sterling, capped 77 times by England, will add much-needed firepower to Chelsea’s attack following their struggles in front of goal last season and the departure of Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan. Thomas Tuchel’s side finished third last season, 19 points behind champions City. They kick off the new season with a trip to Everton on August 6.
Meanwhile, Chelsea are targeting the Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Presnel Kimpembe after boosting their defensive options by agreeing a €40mn (£33.8mn) fee with Napoli for Kalidou Koulibaly, The Guardian reported.
Tuchel is keen to sign three centre-backs and Todd Boehly, the co-owner, has moved swiftly in talks with Napoli over Koulibaly. The 31-year-old is understood to have agreed personal terms on a four-year deal and the transfer should be completed soon. It could be followed by Chelsea, who also hope to sign Nathan Ake from City this week, making a move to buy Kimpembe from PSG, who are believed to be open to selling the France international.
Tuchel is keen to add depth to his defence after losing Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger on free transfers. The manager experienced further frustration when Bayern Munich muscled in one of his biggest transfer targets – the Juventus centre-back Matthijs de Ligt – and the signing of Koulibaly will come as a huge relief.
Bayern’s interest in De Ligt forced Chelsea to look elsewhere and they turned to Koulibaly, who has one year left on his deal.
The move for the Senegal international represents a significant departure from the previous regime’s reluctance to offer lengthy contracts to players in their 30s. The feeling is that Koulibaly, who will join up with Chelsea in LA to complete his medical today, will add vital leadership and experience.