June 26 – Kalidou Koulibaly has become became the latest star to join the exodus to the Saudi domestic league after moving to Al-Hilal from Chelsea on a three-year contract.
The Senegal international has followed in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and, last week, N’Golo Kante, by opting to play in the lucrative Saudi Pro League in the latter stages of their careers.
Al-Hilal, Saudi’s most successful team, have also just signed Portugal international Ruben Neves from Wolverhampton Wanderers
The 32-year-old centerback only spent a year at Chelsea – after signing from Napoli on a four-year contract last summer – and played 32 games for the club in all competitions. He is part of a raft of expected departures from an overloaded array of highly paid Chelsea players to move to various destinations during the summer, Kai Havertz having already left for Arsenal.
Koulibaly was seen as one of Europe’s top defenders before joining Chelsea, but was part of a hugely disappointing season for the London club, which saw it finish 12th in the Premier League and have appointed Mauricio Pochettino as manager to try and revive their fortunes.
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