Nearly three months to the day since Kurt Zouma left West Ham United as a free-agent, the Conference League-winning France international has a new club at last.
And, if anyone out there was brave enough to put a fiver on Kurt Zouma starting afresh in Romanian football, then congratulations on your most unexpected of windfalls.
CFR Cluj president Cristi Balaj indicated that the former West Ham United captain could be officially unveiled before the close of play on Wednesday.
And, true to his word, Cluj confirmed Zouma’s arrival in Romania some 36 minutes to midnight via their official website.
Kurt Zouma joins CFR Cluj after West Ham United exit
Victor Angelescu, the man in charge of Romanian rivals Rapid Bucharest felt that the one-time Everton, Stoke City and Chelsea giant would immediately become ‘one of the best players to sign [for a club in] our league’ once he put pen to paper with the eight-time champions.
And Neletu Varga, Cluj’s owner, sees no reason to believe that Zouma will struggle for motivation in his new home, even if many critics will question how a 30-year-old who should be in his prime finds himself in a league ranked lower than that of Scotland, Cyprus and Norway in the FIFA coefficient table.
“I’m very satisfied,” Varga tells Pro Sport, having spent the time getting to know all about Zouma’s personality and his motivations. “He impressed me with his character, as a person, as a footballer, as a leader.
“He has a lot of common sense and it’s clear that he played at the level he’s played at. He’s an example for the whole team. I hope they welcome him well and share a lot of things from the experience he has.”
Zouma joins a Cluj side looking to go one step further after successive second-place finishes.
A two-time Premier League champion with Chelsea and a Europa Conference League winner at West Ham, one thing he cannot be accused of lacking is a track record of securing silverware.
Cluj boss urges Zouma to bring Champions League football to the Romanian giants
It goes without saying, meanwhile, that Zouma is comfortably the most recognisable name contracted to a club in Romania’s top flight. For a league which doesn’t tend to attract many high-profile foreigners, this is an almighty coup.
“I convinced him with the project,” Varga boasts, setting Zouma the target of bringing elite European football to the Doctor Constantin Radulescu Stadium.
“We will change many things for the better. The dream is the same, since I entered football; To reach the Champions League.
“Until now, it has not been possible, because that is how things have been. But with good organisation, it will be possible.
“This transfer means a new era at CFR. A different mentality and a different organisation. The demands will be much higher from the players and the people in the club.
“This is where the reconstruction begins. Many things will change.”
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