Chelsea are on the verge of completing Marco Palestra’s arrival, with the medical now expected to follow once the final paperwork is signed off between the Blues and Atalanta.
We covered on Thursday how the two clubs were putting the finishing touches on the transfer, with the documentation delaying the 21-year-old’s trip to London.
Fresh comments from former Cagliari sporting director Guido Angelozzi now offer an insight into just how long Chelsea had been working behind the scenes on the deal.
Chelsea watched him everywhere
Speaking to SportMediaset, Angelozzi revealed Chelsea’s interest was far from recent. According to him, the Blues had monitored Palestra for an entire year before moving to secure the defender.
“Chelsea and Manchester City had been following him for a year. They were always at the stadium, at Cagliari and away from home,” he said.
“They kept calling me. They wanted to know everything. Obviously they already had all the data, but they were looking for information about the boy’s character and his qualities.”
That claim helps explain why Chelsea were able to move so decisively once they chose to push ahead with the transfer.
Angelozzi also had plenty of praise for Palestra away from the pitch.
“Marco is a wonderful person, really well behaved and very intelligent. He built a great relationship with his teammates at Cagliari and won everyone’s hearts.”
Premier League move long expected
Guido Angelozzi also suggested he always felt English football would eventually become Palestra’s destination.
“The manager (Fabio Pisacane) threw him straight into the team as soon as he saw him. He’s a very strong player. He was ready for the Premier League even a year ago.”
Interestingly, Angelozzi admitted he briefly thought Inter Milan had won the race.
“I was hoping he’d go to Inter. When I spoke to him a few days ago, he told me he was going to the Nerazzurri.”
Instead, Chelsea’s move ultimately proved too strong. With the paperwork now in its final stages, the medical should be the next step before the Blues complete a transfer that has clearly been more than a year in the making.