Olympique de Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda has rejected an offer from the Blues and decided to join our rivals Crystal Palace in a £1.9m fee, Daily Star reports.
The experienced Frenchman was targeted by Chelsea as a replacement for possibly departing Asmir Begovic, but the 31-year-old turned down the chance in the hopes of getting more first-team football with The Eagles.
Mandanda was also targeted by Merseyside clubs Liverpool and Everton, as both sides were monitoring replacements for Simon Mignolet and Tim Howard respectively.
Marseille have left a difficult season behind them, after the club finished 12th in Ligue 1, which has put several OM players on the move.
For example Chelsea are set to complete the signing of Mandanda’s Marseille team-mate Michy Bathsuayi in a €40m deal in the coming days.
Mandanda completed his medical ahead of his move to Selhurst Park in France’s Euro 2016 base at Clairefontaine, while Bathsuayi did the same in Bordeaux.
