Chelsea rookie criticized for his lack of concentration
"Koulibaly has to focus," Benitez told The Athletic on July 16. "Sometimes he is overconfident and can be distracted. But Koulibaly has a lot of influence at Napoli, and many people say he is the best central defender in Serie A recently."
On July 16th, Coulibaly passed the medical examination and completed the formalities of joining Chelsea from Naples with a transfer fee of 41 million US dollars. The Senegalese midfielder has signed a four-year contract with the option of extending it for 12 months, with a season salary of $11 million. Koulibaly is Chelsea's second rookie this summer, behind Raheem Sterling.
Koulibaly also traveled to Las Vegas to join Chelsea in the preseason. In the United States, Thomas Tuchel's faculty and students met with the United States today on July 17, Charlotte on July 21 and Arsenal on 24/7.
Benitez worked with Koulibaly during the 2014-2015 season, when Napoli won the Italian Super Cup. In that game, Napoli drew 2-2 with Juventus in official time before winning 6-5 on penalties. It was also Koulibaly's debut after being recruited from Heng Ke by Napoli for $8 million.
According to Benitez, Koulibaly shares many similarities with Antonio Rudiger-the prop who had just left Chelsea for Real Madrid earlier in the summer. Both played forcefully, quickly and well with both feet. However, the Spanish coach expressed doubts about whether Koulibaly could quickly integrate into the Premier League environment.
Benitez added: "In Italy, Koulibaly played well because he was too quick, but I don't think he came to England to surpass such opponents." "Air combat ability is not Koulibaly's strong point, but it is not so important in Italy. It will be interesting to see how Koulibaly develops in the Premier League."
In announcements for rookie Koulibaly, Chelsea hailed him as one of the best centre-backs in world football, with all the qualities a modern centre-half needs to fill the void left by Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. Also according to Chelsea's homepage, Koulibaly read the game and has the ability to threaten the opponent's goal in the air, has strong possession and passing ability, and can play a back three and a back four at the same time.
On the day the new club was launched, Koulibaly revealed that Chelsea approached him in 2016 but failed to reach an agreement. The 31-year-old midfielder also spoke to his compatriot Edouard Mendy and his former Napoli team-mate Jorginho before arriving at Stamford Bridge this summer.
