RAMIRES JOINS CHINESE SIDE JIANGSU SUNING.

The Chelsea midfielder Ramires has joined China’s Jiangsu Suning for an initial fee of £20m which could eventually rise to £25m.

Ramires, an £18m signing from Benfica in 2010, has not started a Premier League match under the interim stewardship of Guus Hiddink and was not included among the substitutes for the draw with Everton and Sunday’s win at Arsenal.

The Brazilian signed a four-year contract at Stamford Bridge in October but has slipped down the pecking order.
Best of luck @Rami7oficial, thanks for the memories... https://t.co/sCrsoR9DxJ

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 27, 2016

The Chinese side, who are coached by the former Chelsea player Dan Petrescu and finished ninth in China’s top tier in 2015, are at a training camp in Málaga and Ramires could link up with his new team-mates in Spain before they return to China.

Ramires, capped 52 times, has started only seven league games this season, the last of which was the 2-1 defeat at Leicester that proved to be José Mourinho’s last match as manager.

While with Chelsea, Ramires won the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League and Europa League, making 251 appearances and scoring 34 goals. The Blues website said: “We thank him for his service and wish him well in China.”

With Ramires on his way out, Alexandre Pato arrived in London to secure a six-month loan deal with Chelsea after the move was sanctioned by his current club, Corinthians.