Let me quickly say I’m pleased to have the platform to write for ChelseaFC365 for this upcoming Chelsea 2022/2023 season.
I look forward to expressing my opinions and analysis etc on interesting topics and important stuff.
With Koulibaly’s contract expiring in 2023, the Senegal and Napoli Captain has ultimately gained way too much leverage on De Laurentiis & Napoli. ADL is notorious for his past stances on deals, as seen with Chelsea and Marina Granovskia.
The Italian businessman showed some wisdom here & is respecting Kalidou’s wish to leave and cashing in after offering him a long term deal and opportunity to join Napolis board after his playing days.
The £33m suggested fee shows that Chelsea put together a respectable offer that gives Napoli some funds to find themselves another quality defender.
Ramadani met with Todd Boehly and Chelsea last weekend and on Tuesday it was reported that personal terms were never an issue and the player is pushing for the move.
The signing itself ticks a lot of boxes for me.
At 31 years old, I still believe Koulibaly has at least a few prime years in the tank. I’m convinced the player will age gracefully even in the vicious Premier League. Napoli had the joint best defence with AC Milan last season, conceding 31 goals in 2021/2022.
KK has played mostly at LCB in a back 4 so it’ll be interesting to see what Tuchel has in store for him. For me, I’d like to see Koulibaly at LCB or CCB in the back 3 or the left side of the back 4.
KK in my opinion is one of the best ball playing centre backs in the world and really good under pressure. I feel really comfortable with him replacing Rudiger on that side of the pitch if we continue with the same system. I’ve heard some people questioning his age and for me, I see a player that will age gracefully for time. I don’t think he’ll suddenly lose his pace, it will be something he adapts to in time.
Koulibaly has a pretty clean injury history despite playing over 300 matches for Napoli and 500 apps in career. It’s promising to see no serious tears or breaks, so ultimately we’re getting a relativley healthy and fresh player capable of matching the harsh demands of England’s competitions.
Source – Transfermarkt.com :
Here is some data on Koulibaly’s defensive duels last season for Napoli at a healthy 69.72%.
Source – ChelseaDatabase on Twitter
Below we also have Koulibaly’s Aerial win rate vs opponents.
Source – ChelseaDatabase on Twitter
Here are some characteristics of Koulibaly and some strengths and weaknesses, he’s quite the complete player at this stage of his career.
Source – WhoScored.com
All in all, I’m really satisfied with this signing and it’s growing on me by the minute. From the circulated wages being reported around 150-170k GBP P/W, he’ll fit into Chelsea wage structure albeit handsomely paid to reflect the player’s ability of course.
Infamous’s Grade on Koulibaly at £33M : A-
I’d like to preface this by saying I’m typically a harsh grader, so this shows I’m convinced it’s a strong transfer from Chelsea . I’m going to make the bet that Koulibaly will age gracefully.
Koulibaly has the high IQ and attributes I look for from a defender who still has some prime years left.
If Chelsea have Koulibaly starting in important UCL knockout matches, I think they will have a strong chance vs whatever team in 2022/2023.
By InfamousChelsea
