Giorgio Chiellini completes transfer to LAFC

Veteran defender Giorgio Chiellini's transfer to Los Angeles FC is complete.

The 37-year-old center-back has been linked with a transfer to MLS since last summer when his Juventus contract was set to expire. But he opted to stay in Turin for another year following the return of Max Allegri as manager.

Chiellini finally left Juventus at the end of the 2021/22 campaign after 17 years, during which he made 561 appearances across all competitions and won a host of major honors, including nine Serie A titles.

LAFC quickly emerged as the clear frontrunner in MLS to sign Chiellini, with an official announcement seemingly imminent.

But ahead of that formality, Chiellini posted a video of himself wearing an LAFC hat and top on social media with the caption 'The Next Chapter'. Chiellini tagged the club in his post and LAFC promptly retweeted.

LAFC later confirmed the news via an official statement revealing Chiellini arrives on a Targeted Allocation Money (TAM) deal through 2023.

“Giorgio is a special, one-of-a-kind player and person,” LAFC co-president and general manager John Thorrington said. “Signing Giorgio was a unique opportunity to improve our club. He will complement what we believe is already a strong team as every day he will set the right example with his leadership competitiveness, and experience.He is a serial winner at the highest levels, and we are grateful he has chosen LAFC to join in our pursuit of trophies.”

Chiellini himself added: “I felt very strongly about this new chapter in my career, and I am grateful to LAFC for this opportunity. I’m thankful for all my years with Juventus and I’m looking forward to winning many more trophies in Los Angeles.”

Chiellini will join an LAFC group going strong at the top of the overall standings with 29 points from 14 MLS matches so far this season.

The 117-time Italy international will join the likes of Jesus Murillo, Mamadou Fall, and Eddie Segura on LAFC's center-back depth chart. Given the quality already at Steve Cherundolo's disposal, Chiellini will be able to take his time adjusting to MLS, safe in the knowledge he won't have the responsibility of carrying the Black and Gold.

“Giorgio’s experience will be invaluable to us,” LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo said. “He is one of the top defenders to ever play, he brings a deep knowledge of the game and an ability to have an impact on our young players both on and off the field. His addition is the perfect supplement to the work we are doing every day.”