Papy Djilobodji: Who is the Chelsea New Boy?

Brendan Macfarlane

On Monday afternoon, the final day of the French transfer window, Chelsea completed the unexpected signing of Nantes centre-back Papy Djilobodji for a fee reported to be €3m million.

It surprised everyone when reports in both the French and English press suggested that Chelsea could be on the verge of signing the Senegal international. The 26-year-old may not be the most well-known of Jose Mourinho’s transfer targets this summer, but he has developed a sound reputation for himself in France, ever since he moved to the club in 2009. At such a low fee, the west London club could possibly have grabbed themselves a deadline day bargain.

Djilobodji arrived in France in 2009, signing with US Sénart-Moissy, a club competing in the CFA 2, the fifth-tier of French football. After quickly establishing himself as one of the most impressive prospects in the lower leagues, Nantes brought him to the Stade de la Beaujoire in December of the same year. Having promptly become a regular starter and a fans’ favourite, he helped guide his side to a return to France’s top division from Ligue 2 in the 2012-2013 season. Although the Nantes scouts should be credited for spotting him, it is perhaps to the discredit of Lazio and Lille that they both let the young ‘Djilo’ go after trials.

After impressing in Ligue 1, Djilobodji made his debut with the Sengalese first-team in 2013, and he has since made 15 international appearances for the Lions of Teranga. Such is his popularity with his international side’s fans, Senegalese pop-artist Admow release a song for the 2015 AFCON tournament which was entitled “A La Djilobodji“, or ‘Djilobodji style!’.

Standing at 6 foot 4 inches, Djilobodji is an uncompromising and forceful centre-back, who rarely comes out second best in aerial duels and as a result, he would easily adapt to the Premier League’s physicality. He is most likely to remind EPL fans of players like Christopher Samba and Brede Hangeland, given the fact that he dominates the box with his physical stature.

He is also deceptively quick for his size, and though he is not blessed with blistering natural pace, he has a natural sense of positional awareness which allows him to be in the right place at the right time to intercept and to clear the danger, a feat which he has become especially renowned for.

There are areas in which he will need to improve if he is to become a top quality defender, most obviously his lack of composure when in possession and his sometimes sloppy use of the ball from feet. His decision-making is by and large sensible; however at times he lacks the technical ability to pick out passes, and his poor distribution from feet has held him back from being a top defender at one of the bigger Ligue 1 clubs.

Chelsea are purchasing a reliable and honest centre-back who is more than capable of adjusting to life in the Premier League and to taking on the challenge of marking some of the league’s most physical centre-forwards. They are not however buying a player who is likely to become the next Alessandro Nesta, and it is most likely that Djilobodji will be used within a squad rotation capacity.

 

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