Days before the transfer window of the summer ended (August 31), reports were doing the rounds that Chelsea was seriously planning to sign Givanildo Vieira de Souza aka Hulk of Porto, but that was not meant to happen. Latest reports now say that Zenit St Petersburg has signed him for a whopping £32 million.

Hulk sparked rumours of his link up with Chelsea after he reportedly spoke to Roberto Di Matteo, manager of the Bules, after Didier Drogba left the club.

Brazil striker Hulk, who had talks with Chelsea in May, has joined Zenit St Petersburg from Porto in a transfer deal worth £32 million. The 26-year-old has signed a five-year deal with the Russian champions, who are managed by Luciano Spalletti, reported BBC. 

Zenit St Petersburg has also reportedly signed a five-year contract with 23-year-old midfielder Axel Witsel from Benfica for a transfer deal worth £32 million.

It was earlier reported that Zenit would go to any extent to rope in Hulk to realise its dream of winning the Champions League.

"Despite all the rumours and speculation, no English clubs were bidding for Hulk - he was far too expensive. Zenit will pay a minimum of €50 million. The fee might be as high as €60 million. I expect it will go ahead in the next 24 hours, but no English club was prepared to come anywhere near to that figure," ESPN quoted a source as saying. 

Hulk played for Japanese club Tokyo Verdy and scored 54 goals for the team before joining Porto four years ago. He played for Brazil in the recently concluded London Olympics.

To contact the editor, e-mail: