Chelsea seal deal for St-Étienne defender Zouma
Friday, January 31, 2014
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Chelsea FC have paid a reported €15.1m to sign 19-year-old AS Saint-Étienne defender Kurt Zouma, who will stay with the French side on loan until the season's close.
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Chelsea FC have completed the signing of French Under-21 international defender Kurt Zouma from AS Saint-Étienne on a five-and-a-half-year contract.
The clubs have agreed a fee believed to be in the region of €15.1m, with Chelsea allowing Zouma to remain at Saint-Étienne for the remainder of the season. Since making his Ligue 1 debut in September 2011, the highly-rated 19-year-old has played 52 league games for Les Verts, scoring four times.
Centre-back Zouma represents Chelsea's third January acquisition following the arrivals of SL Benfica midfielder Nemanja Matić and winger Mohamed Salah from FC Basel 1893. José Mourinho's team tackle Galatasaray AŞ in the UEFA Champions League round of 16, with the first leg in Istanbul on 26 February.