Brazilian center-back Igor Julio has joined Brighton from Fiorentina for a transfer fee worth £14.5 million.
After the Premier League club and the Italian Serie A side agreed on the deal, Igor Julio put pen to paper for a four-year contract. This means that the 25-year-old Brazilian football star will play for the English club until 2028.
Before Brighton went for the defender, the club’s coach Roberto de Zerbi was interested in signing Chelsea and England Under-21 international Levi Colwill. However, Brighton were unable to meet up with the price tag of the Englishman.
Recall that Chelsea rejected Brighton’s £40 million bid for the 20-year-old Colwill. That forced the club to turn their attention to Igor Julio who was a cheaper alternative.
Julio agreed to leave Fiorentina where he has been playing European club competitions for Brighton that will have their first experience in the continent next season.
Recall that the 25-year-old Brazilian defender played a significant role in helping the Italian club reach the Europa Conference League final which they lost to West Ham United last season.
The center-back, who began his career in Austria with Red Bull Salzburg before going to Italy, joined Fiorentina from SPAL in January 2020 and went on to make 110 Serie A appearances.
The Brazilian, who is yet to receive an international call-up, had disciplinary issues the previous season, receiving 12 yellow cards and two red cards in 45 games.
