Featured Image Credit: BT Sport/Alamy
Topics: Football, Chelsea, Christopher Nkunku
Marcus Chan
Chelsea have officially confirmed they have signed Christopher Nkunku from RB Leipzig.
After months of speculation, Chelsea announced the news on Tuesday afternoon.
Their statement read: “Chelsea is delighted to announce Christopher Nkunku will join the club from RB Leipzig ahead of the 2023/24 season.
“The 25-year-old, who has been capped 10 times by France, has agreed a six-year contract, which will begin on 1 July.”
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Prior to the announcement, Chelsea tweeted a balloon emoji to tease fans about the Nkunku news.
The reason behind the ballon is because the Frenchman celebrated one of his goals by inflating a balloon he pulled out from his sock. Nkunku first did that celebration in November during a 4-0 win against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League.
After seeing the celebration, many fans asked why Nkunku decided to celebrate by blowing up a balloon.
In response, Nkunku said: “The balloon was for my son. He likes balloons.”
The Frenchman has since pulled out the same celebration on multiple occasions, including on his final appearance for Leipzig when he scored in the DFB-Pokal final.
Upon joining Chelsea, the 25-year-old told the club’s official website: “I am incredibly happy to be joining Chelsea.
“A big effort was made to bring me to the club and I am looking forward to meeting my new coach and teammates and showing the Chelsea supporters what I can do on the pitch.”
He added: “Having played in Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga, I now want to play in the Premier League, one of the strongest leagues in the world. I am very excited for this challenge and will be proud to wear the Chelsea shirt.”
The club’s co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: “Christopher has proved himself one of the standout attacking players in European football over the past two seasons and will add quality, creativity and versatility to our squad.
“He has demonstrated his ability at the highest level with RB Leipzig and France and we look forward to him joining up with his new teammates ahead of the new season.”