(Football news) Thomas Tuchel has reunited with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, this time at Chelsea with the Blues paying £10m plus Marcos Alonso for the striker. The Gabonese striker travelled to London on Thursday to finalise the two year deal which was completed after the 11 pm deadline but Chelsea had already filed the deal sheet to allow more time. Aubameyang is currently out for three weeks after suffering a minor fracture on his jaw during an attack on his home but the striker will resume non contact training next week.
Aubameyang joined Barcelona from Arsenal on a free transfer in January but found himself surplus to requirements with the Catalan giants after Robert Lewandowski was signed from Bayern Munich. Under Tuchel at Borussia Dortmund, Aubameyang scored 79 goals during the two seasons at the German club and Chelsea will hope he can replicate that form for the Blues. As part of the deal, Marcos Alonso will go to Barcelona and while the transfer hasn’t officially been announced yet, it’s expected to be concluded soon. Chelsea have had a busy transfer window, spending £268m on players such as Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella, Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly. The club also signed Denis Zakaria on a loan deal from Juventus but saw their £43m bid rejected by Ajax for Edson Alvarez.
Speaking after his signing, Aubameyang said “I’m really happy. It’s an honour to be part of this team and I can’t wait to start. I have some unfinished business with the Premier League so it’s good to be back and really exciting.” Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly said “Pierre-Emerick is an elite striker with a proven track record in the Premier League and his arrival strengthens our squad, giving us new attacking options. We are thrilled to have Pierre-Emerick on board with us in the new era at Chelsea and we’re really looking forward to working with him.” Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano, co-controlling owners, added “We are really pleased to welcome Pierre-Emerick back to London as one of the final and important pieces to be added at Chelsea this summer. He’s a world-class forward and a leader, and we can’t wait to see him in blue this season.”
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