Gianfranco Zola confirms that current Napoli star Stanislav Lobotka ‘was proposed to Chelsea’ in 2018-19, but the Stamford Bridge side turned him down.
The midfielder today announced he has signed a new contract with the Partenopei, committing to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona side until June 2027 with a further option to extend for another year.
“I already knew Lobotka, because I saw a few of his games when he was proposed to Chelsea,” revealed Zola during his role as pundit on Amazon Prime Italia for tonight’s Champions League match against Eintracht Frankfurt.
“He was a good player, but nowhere near what he has become at Napoli today.”
Napoli signed Lobotka from Celta Vigo in January 2020 and he initially struggled, but has gone from strength to strength under coach Luciano Spalletti.
At the time of Zola’s viewing, the Slovakia international had only just joined Celta Vigo from Nordsjaelland at a cost of €5m.
Zola was assistant manager to Maurizio Sarri at Chelsea for the 2018-19 season.
So far this season, Lobotka has contributed one goal and one assist in 34 competitive games, helping Napoli go 18 points clear at the top of the Serie A table.
They are also on the verge of reaching the Champions League quarter-final for the first time in their history.