Chelsea Sign Deco - Official
Chelesa have officially announced the signing of Portuguese midfielder Deco, who signs on after a torrid final season at FC Barcelona. Player and new club alike have been seeking each other out for some time, and just days after Euro 2008 they have completed their deal.
Chelsea have officially confirmed via their website that Deco has become Luiz Felipe Scolari's first signing as boss.
Posing for photographs with club executive Peter Kenyon, the Portuguese international remarked, "It is good for me to be here and first of all I am very happy to be here.
"I am sure I have come at the right time to do great things and be able to help Chelsea go back to the way it was and come back to being the first one, not only in England but also to win the Champions League that has been their dream for so long."
The 30-year-old has been clawing at the exit door of Barcelona after a difficult last season at Camp Nou, and the Catalan club seemed all too eager to grant his wish.
No fee has been formally confirmed by the interested parties, but £8m (€10m) is rumoured to be the price paid by the Pensioners for Deco, whose contract was not up until 2010. He is said to have penned a two-year deal at the Bridge.
London Calling
The former Porto man, who narrowly missed out on being able to join up with former mentor José Mourinho, implied that a move to England was something of a step up from Barça.
"The Premier League is a great league and it is getting better and you can see that with the Champions League Final, where you had two English teams," he explained.
"It is great that we have so many great players here at Chelsea and it is great that there is the competition which is healthy for everybody and this just makes the team better."
"To have great players in any position of the club just enhances the club.
"I know it is a new challenge but I am looking forward to it.
"I know I need a little bit of time to adapt bit but I am sure I will adapt quite well and quite fast and do my best for the team."
Swings & Roundabouts
With Deco now vying for a first team place at the Bridge, there could be other midfield movements to come, most notably out of the exit door.
Frank Lampard is said to be in Milan for talks with Internazionale over a possible switch to Serie A, and with competition for an attacking place in the line-up his mission may just have become that much more urgent.
