Aston Villa’s newest signing from Denmark – Jores Okore has revealed that he was impressed by how much belief Villa as a club and boss Paul Lambert had in the defender, which was the primarily the reason why he chose them over Chelsea.

Okore completed the switch from Danish club FC-Nordsjælland to Villa this week in a deal estimated at £4 million. The 20-year old becomes another young addition for Lambert, in a team that already functions on the youth system, since the manager’s arrival from Norwich City. Except club skipper Ron Vlaar, who is 28-years old, all other regular defenders are below the age of 24, signaling the manager’s strategy of enhancing the younger players into potential stars.

As for his career, Okore was born in the Ivory Coast, but represents Denmark internationally. The center back developed into a professional at FC-Nordsjælland, where he dedicated four years to training between 2007 and 2011, before being offered a professional contract by the club. The player accepted the challenge, and had been playing for the club until there was concrete interest shown by clubs abroad, including Chelsea and Villa.

For Chelsea, this has been an upsetting week, as they lost another potential star. The Blues scouting team followed the player’s progress through his years in Denmark, and recognized him as a suitable player for the club’s profile. However, youngsters today make decisions about signing for a club based on the first team action they expect. Given the star-studded profile at Chelsea, Okore would be vary about first team action, considering the presence of some of the best defenders in the world present.

We recently reported about the one of the club’s prime targets – Edinson Cavani reportedly choosing Real Madrid over Chelsea in a deal exceeding £50 million. Okore signing for Villa comes as another blow for the Blues, as they look to recover in the summer transfer window.

It certainly has not been the best of starts to Jose Mourinho’s second stint at the club, but hopefully for Chelsea fans, the club can find suitable alternative targets.

According to Metro, Okore said, “I have a good feeling it was the right decision to turn down Chelsea,”

“I feel that I have arrived at a club that believes in me.”

“The manager [Paul Lambert] has said all the right things and that has caught my attention. This is going to be good.”