Chelsea in dreamland as transfer talks opened for €80m star

Tom Weber

Updated: 12 Jul 2024 17:34 BST
3 min read

Chelsea are in talks with Al-Ittihad over the transfer of Kepa Arrizabalaga, according to a report.

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To this day the world's most expensive goalkeeper, the Spaniard never managed to live up to his €80 million price tag at Stamford Bridge. Indeed, nor did he manage to do this on loan at Real Madrid last season.

Kepa's time at Stamford Bridge is coming to an end and Chelsea are keen to shift him. The 29-year-old has been adamant that he has no intention of permanently returning to the Blues and solutions are being sought.

The player would prefer to remain in his native Spain, but Real Madrid are far from convinced that they should bring him back after he lost his seemingly undisputed No.1 spot to perennial No.2 Andriy Lunin, continuing his worrying fall from grace.

Now, it seems that his future may lie in the Middle East and not on the Iberian peninsula.

Al-Ittihad open Kepa talks

According to The Athletic, Al-Ittihad have opened talks with Chelsea over the potential transfer of Kepa. Not much information is provided by the report as negotiations are seemingly in very early stages.

What is stated is that it is not yet ruled out that Real Madrid could attempt to bring him back to the club as uncertainty over Lunin's future persists. With Thibaut Courtois set to return as Los Blancos' main man between the sticks, the Ukrainian could head for the exit.

Intriguingly, the report also claims that those within Kepa's camp insist that Chelsea and the player himself have yet to make a firm decision on his future, seemingly opening the door to a potential return to Stamford Bridge, where he is still under contract for another year.

As for Al-Ittihad, the turmoil-stricken 2023 Saudi Pro League champions are looking for a new goalkeeper as Marcelo Grohe is set to join Al-Kholood. The Jeddah giants are on the verge of appointing Laurent Blanc as their new head coach after president Louay Nazer resigned following a rift within the club over whether or not to hire ex-Milan boss Stefano Pioli.