Here we go! Badiashile leaves Chelsea for Napoli

Napoli have reached an agreement with Chelsea for the transfer of central defender Benoît Badiashile.

Details: Fabrizio Romano has confirmed the deal with his trademark "here we go": the clubs have reached a verbal agreement for a loan worth €3 million plus €1 million in add-ons, with a €27 million buy option. The Neapolitans will cover the player's full salary. This means Massimiliano Allegri gets a new center-back following Alessandro Buongiorno's injury.

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For Chelsea, this is a logical continuation of their squad overhaul: after the arrival of Maxence Lacroix from Crystal Palace, the Frenchman was left without a place in the squad, and the club needs to offload surplus players due to Premier League registration limits. Over three and a half years at Stamford Bridge, Badiashile played just 42 Premier League matches, never finding consistent form due to injuries.

Chelsea signed the defender from Monaco in January 2023 for almost €38 million on a seven-and-a-half-year contract, but the investment didn’t pay off: last season, he featured in only 16 matches across all competitions. Transfermarkt values the 25-year-old Frenchman at €15 million, making this a golden opportunity for Napoli to resurrect his talent for a reasonable fee.

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