Atalanta signs Ivory Coast defender Kossounou from Leverkusen, which moves quickly to replace him

LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Ivory Coast defender Odilon Kossounou has joined Italian club Atalanta from Bayer Leverkusen, which moved quickly to sign Nordi Mukiele on loan from Paris Saint-Germain as his replacement.

The Bundesliga club said Wednesday that Kossounou, who helped Ivory Coast win the Africa Cup of Nations title earlier this year, was joining Europa League winner Atalanta on loan for the season with the Italian club securing an option to buy at the end of the loan deal.

Kossounou returned from the Africa Cup to help Leverkusen to a first-ever Bundesliga title as well as the German Cup. He made 73 Bundesliga appearances for the club after joining from Club Brugge in 2021.

Kicker magazine reported Leverkusen was getting 5.5 million euros ($6 million) for the loan, while Atalanta can make the deal permanent for 25 million ($28 million) at the end of the season.

“Odilon’s switch is a good solution for all involved,” Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said.

The 26-year-old Mukiele is returning to the Bundesliga for one year on loan. Mukiele made 100 German league appearances over four seasons at Leipzig before he joined PSG in 2022.

Mukiele won two league titles at PSG but didn’t play as much as he might have liked, with 16 league appearances last season and 19 the season before.

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