Skip to main content

Football

Koulibaly keen to 'give back' to Chelsea amid miserable debut campaign

kalidou-koulibaly_1uhvz6fzw9i1416vc6oaxef4ju.jpg

Kalidou Koulibaly acknowledges his debut campaign at Chelsea has not gone to plan, but the Senegal international remains committed to spending "many years" with the Blues.

Koulibaly left Napoli for Stamford Bridge in a £33.8million (€40m) deal last July, as part of a huge spending spree sanctioned in Chelsea's first transfer window under the Todd Boehly regime.

Advertisement

However, Chelsea have endured a dire first campaign since their change of owner, sitting 11th in the Premier League table after sacking two bosses in Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter.

Caretaker manager Frank Lampard oversaw a 1-0 defeat to Wolves in his first game at the helm on Saturday, leaving the London side 17 points adrift of the Champions League places.

While Koulibaly admits he has not performed to the best of his abilities since arriving in the Premier League, he is keen to make amends in future campaigns.

"I know I'm not at 100 per cent yet, but I think I'm coming to my level," he told The Times. "Chelsea made a big decision to sign me and there's a big desire in me to give back. 

"I want to be part of this club for many years. This is not the year Chelsea were expecting, but sometimes when you have big changes, new owners, and half the team is new, everybody has to adapt.

"But we know how big the ambition is here and we're going to work to win back the confidence of the supporters."

Koulibaly believes the squad must accept responsibility for the coaching changes that have blighted Chelsea's campaign, adding: "When you change managers, it's like you failed somewhere. 

"You have to keep on fighting, and we'll give everything. Our new manager is a big legend, so we have to be behind him. We know we can do better – and we will."

Chelsea's most recent defeat was their seventh on the road in the Premier League this season. They last lost more away games in a single campaign in 2000-01 (eight).

Upcoming Matches

competition-logo
English Premier League
Gameweek 16 of 38
Saturday, 13 Dec
11:00 PM
Chelsea-team-logo Chelsea
Everton-team-logo Everton
11:00 PM
Liverpool-team-logo Liverpool
Brighton Hove Albion-team-logo Brighton Hove Albion
Sunday, 14 Dec
01:30 AM
Burnley-team-logo Burnley
Fulham-team-logo Fulham
04:00 AM
Arsenal-team-logo Arsenal
Wolverhampton Wanderers-team-logo Wolverhampton Wanderers
10:00 PM
Nottingham Forest-team-logo Nottingham Forest
Tottenham Hotspur-team-logo Tottenham Hotspur
10:00 PM
Crystal Palace-team-logo Crystal Palace
Manchester City-team-logo Manchester City
10:00 PM
West Ham United-team-logo West Ham United
Aston Villa-team-logo Aston Villa
10:00 PM
Sunderland-team-logo Sunderland
Newcastle United-team-logo Newcastle United
Monday, 15 Dec
12:30 AM
Brentford-team-logo Brentford
Leeds United-team-logo Leeds United
Tuesday, 16 Dec
04:00 AM
Manchester United-team-logo Manchester United
Bournemouth AFC-team-logo Bournemouth AFC

Must Watch Video