Chelsea sign Italian right-back Davide Zappacosta

Davide Zappacosta<br />PHOTO: Twitter/ Chelsea

Premier League champions Chelsea have bolstered their squad with a transfer deadline-day move for Italian right-back Davide Zappacosta.

Zappacosta, 25, signed a four-year deal after Chelsea paid Torino a reported fee of around £23 million ($29.8 million, 25 million euros) for his services.

He has been capped four times by Italy and played under Chelsea manager Antonio Conte during his time as national coach.

“Davide is a player of international calibre who Antonio Conte knows well and we have been aware of for some time,” Chelsea technical director Michael Emenalo told the club website late on Thursday.

“We are very pleased to be able to bring him to the club and believe he will become an important member of the squad.”

Chelsea previously completed moves for German defender Antonio Rudiger, France midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko and Spain striker Alvaro Morata, who joined from Real Madrid in a club-record £58 million deal.

The west London club were also reported late on Thursday to be working on a £35 million deal to sign England midfielder Danny Drinkwater from Leicester City.

But 23-year-old England midfielder Ross Barkley apparently had a change of heart about joining Chelsea after undergoing a medical, deciding instead to stay put at Everton.

“The two clubs agreed a deal of £35 million and I think personal terms were agreed,” Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri told Sky Sports News.

“After the medical we heard from Paul Martin, Ross Barkley’s agent, that he had changed his mind and wanted to reconsider his position in the January window.

“He’s currently injured so technically he will be with us. He is under contract for another year. It’s a big surprise, but that’s football.”

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