Official: Sulemana joins Atalanta as Cagliari land Zortea, Adopo and Piccoli in quadruple deal

Atalanta have announced a four-player agreement with Cagliari that brings midfielder Ibrahim Sulemana to Bergamo and sends Nadir Zortea, Michel Ndary Adopo and Roberto Piccoli in the opposite direction. The multi-part deal, formalised by both clubs, reshuffles two squads as Serie A sides fine-tune their rosters for the new campaign.

Sulemana, a 23-year-old Ghana international, joins the Nerazzurri on a permanent transfer for a reported €8m. The midfielder arrives from Cagliari and has already earned senior caps for Ghana, adding depth to Atalanta's engine room with his energy and his ability to carry the ball from deep.

Atalanta have also sold academy graduate Zortea to the Sardinians for around €5m. The 25-year-old full-back, a product of the club's youth system, made 17 Serie A appearances and scored two goals for La Dea, spending time out on loan before establishing himself in the first-team picture.

Centre-forward Piccoli moves the same way on a season-long loan worth €2m, with Cagliari holding an option to make the switch permanent for a further €10m at the end of the campaign. Adopo, who joined Atalanta as a free agent from Torino last year, also heads to the island on a one-year loan with an option to buy, although the figures attached to that part of the agreement have not been disclosed.

The quadruple deal hands Davide Nicola's Cagliari ready-made reinforcements across defence, midfield and attack in a single stroke, while Atalanta slim down their squad and refresh their midfield with a player who already knows Italian football. Both clubs confirmed the transfers on the same day, closing one of the most intricate multi-player operations of the summer window.

Sources

• Football Italia
• L'Unione Sarda