MOSCOW, Sept 4: Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg splashed a record 80 million euros ($100 million) to sign Brazilian striker Hulk and Belgian midfielder Axel Witsel from Portuguese clubs on five-year contracts on Monday.
Hulk, 26, joined Zenit from Porto and the 23-year-old Witsel moved from Portuguese rivals Benfica.
“It’s now official. Both players had signed five-year deals,” Zenit spokesman Dmitry Tsimmerman said.The deal for Hulk was the first to be revealed, with Zenit’s club site announcing: “Congratulations to all of our supporters, to all of our fans, Hulk joined Zenit.”
No financial details of the Hulk deal were disclosed, though Russian daily Sport Express reported, referring to an unnamed Zenit club source, that Zenit would pay Porto around 40 million euros in several instalments over three years.
However, the player’s agent, Teodoro Fonseca, told Portuguese agency Lusa that the fee was 60 million euros. Such a fee would make Hulk the second-most expensive Brazilian player after Real Madrid paid 65 million euros for Kaka in 2009.
Hulk helped Porto to win three Portuguese league titles and the 2011 Europa League trophy after joining from the Japanese J League in 2008.
As a member of Brazil’s national team, Hulk has 14 caps and five goals. He played at the London Olympics earlier this year as one of his country’s three over-23 players.
Among the clubs who declared an interest in Hulk during the close season were Champions League holders Chelsea.
“This is another victory, yet another important step in my life,” the club’s website quoted him as saying. “But I must say how grateful I am to Porto for opening the door to Europe. I was very happy in Portugal.
“I want to be happy at Zenit and in Russia also. I want to keep moving in the same direction: winning matches and many titles as I did with Porto.”
Zenit will pay Benfica 40 million euros for Witsel after triggering a buyout clause in his contract, the Portuguese club said in a statement on their website.
Witsel, who has played 30 times for the Belgian national team, spent a season at Benfica after joining from Standard Liege for 8 million euros.
Zenit, drawn in Champions League Group C along with AC Milan, Anderlecht and Malaga, will be able to use both players in Europe’s premier club competition.
Zenit, bankrolled Russia’s natural-gas monopoly OAO Gazprom, are top of the country’s championship and have been linked with bids for a number of other players, including Manchester United winger Nani.—Agencies