Chelsea have confirmed the signing of goalkeeper Eduardo from Dinamo Zagreb this afternoon. The 33-year-old signed a one-year contract.
We can today confirm the signing of goalkeeper Eduardo from Dinamo Zagreb... https://t.co/SQv37pF1T8
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 25, 2016
The Portuguese veteran was part of their Euro 2016 winning squad, though he didn't feature in any games during the tournament. At Dinamo since July 2014, he’d won Croatia's domestic double twice and helped the club reach the Champions League's group stage this season, when they beat Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg 3-2 win over two legs in the competition's playoff round.
Given the lack of recent rumours linking Asmir Begovic to an exit from Stamford Bridge, it's likely that Eduardo will be our third choice player for the position, filling a position previously filled by Marco Amelia. Far from an impact signing, then, but still a useful one in case of an injury or two (just as it happened last season, when Chelsea signed Amelia in the wake of Courtois’s long-term injury). Better safe than sorry.
“Having the opportunity to come to the Premier League and to Chelsea, to such a big club, it is an easy decision to make. For me this is the best and the most difficult league and it is another level from where I have been until now. So it is a new challenge, at this moment I feel very good, so I am ready for this.”
“All the colleagues I have always say the dream is to come to the Premier League, where there are the best clubs and the best players, and the opportunity to come here arrived at this moment. I am happy to be here and I hope I meet the expectations people have for me.”
-Eduardo; source: Chelsea FC
Eduardo does take up a foreign spot in the squad, but without needing to worry about the stricter European rules, we’re still on good shape as far that goes.