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Confirmed: Deadline day Chelsea transfer has finally gone through
BRANISLAV IVANOVIC has completed his move from Chelsea to Zenit St Petersburg.
Branislav Ivanovic poses with a Zenit St Petersburg shirt
IT'S OFFICIAL- Branislav Ivanovic is a Zenit player!
— FC Zenit in English (@fczenit_en) February 1, 2017
✍More details here: https://t.co/rlXQCYEdiT pic.twitter.com/I2DhHkdYoG
Ivanovic missed Chelsea’s 1-1 draw at Liverpool last night as he put the finishes touches to his Stamford Bridge exit.
The 32-year-old has agreed a two-and-a-half year contract with Zenit, leaving Chelsea on a free transfer.
Ivanovic sealed his transfer yesterday but Zenit officially confirmed the move had gone through today.
Первое фото Ивановича в футболке "Зенита"https://t.co/pwqcLxKJeI pic.twitter.com/Jb1oESSCrb
— СЭ Зенит (@zenit_se) January 31, 2017
In a statement the Russian club said: “The blue-white-sky blues are delighted to welcome Branislav Ivanovic to St. Petersburg and we’re sure he will be a huge success at Zenit!”
Ivanovic was pictured in a Zenit shirt last night after breaking from the Chelsea squad to fly to Russia.
The Serbia international was Chelsea’s second-longest serving player after John Terry but has now ended his nine-year spell in west London.
Branislav Ivanovic scored in his last game for Chelsea
Ivanovic fell out of favour after Antonio Conte switched to a 3-4-3 formation earlier in the season.
And the Italian boss gave the green light for the defender to move on in search of first-team football.
“He has played a lot of games for this club, won a lot for this club,” Conte said.
Branislav Ivanovic leaves Chelsea on a free transfer
“He is 32 and can play for many years. He can continue to play at the top level.
“But you have to respect the decision. A legend of the club and if you are not playing a lot you can make a decision to move to another team.”
Ivanovic won nine trophies during his time at Chelsea, including two Premier League titles and the Champions League.