Chelsea Football Club have announced that Mateo Kovacic has arrived on a season-long loan from Real Madrid.
Contrary to reports, there is no option to buy as per The Evening Standard. The Real Madrid hierarchy, reportedly, was extremely unwilling to let Kovacic depart the Bernabeu.
Director, Marina Granovskaia had this to say about Chelsea’s new loan signing:
“We are very happy to welcome Mateo to the Chelsea family. He is a perfect fit for us this season, his style is well suited to how Maurizio wants to play and we are sure he will prove to be a valuable asset for the club.”
Kovacic, 24, had his mind set on a move away from the Bernabeu after new manager, Julen Lopetegui, failed to assure the Croat a place in the starting eleven. Kovacic only started 10 La Liga matches last season, scoring two goals.
Kovacic is predominately a central midfielder where he will be competing alongside the likes of Ross Barkley, Cesc Fabregas and Ruben Loftus Cheek for the third midfield position available, with Jorginho and N’Golo Kante most likely occupying the other central midfielder positions. The 24-year-old Croat can also play as a defensive midfielder, having played in that position 32 times in his career.
The 24-year-old Croat is a full international, having gained 46 international caps. He was 18 when he made his national team debut in March 2013. Kovacic has scored once for his country in a 4-0 comprehensive victory over international minnows, Gibraltar. Kovacic was in Croatia’s 23 man squad which progressed to the 2018 World Cup Final in Russia. Unfortunately, Kovacic missed a penalty during Croatia’s penalty shoot-out victory against Russia.
Welcome Mateo.
