Cagliari claim Zola deal is done

Former Italy international Gianfranco Zola has left Chelsea for Sardinian team Cagliari, the Serie B club said today.

Former Italy international Gianfranco Zola has left Chelsea for Sardinian team Cagliari, the Serie B club said today.

Zola had been offered another year with the English Premier League club after his contract ran out but has opted to return to Italy after seven years in London.

Zola is a long term Cagliari fan and had hinted earlier today that the move was a real possibility.

"Cagliari is the team of my heart," said the Itailan. "The team that I supported when I was a child was not Juventus but Cagliari.

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The Sardinian-born forward, who played for Napoli and Parma in Italy before moving to Chelsea in 1996, will be presented to the media later today, according to Cagliari.