While there’s been a flurry of transfer activity all summer at Chelsea – including tons of chatter about Romelu Lukaku, one of the other members of the ostracised “bomb squad” has not had much interest.
Kepa Arrizabalaga briefly looked like he might be going back to Real Madrid, where he spent last season on loan, but that idea seemed to fizzle out pretty early in the summer.
Now David Ornstein has come from nowhere with a big update on the goalkeeper and his future. The Athletic’s top transfer man today claims that Premier League side Bournemouth are working on a deal to sign the Spaniard on loan.
The 29 year old is their “top target”, although there are apparently “other teams considering Arrizabalaga.”
🚨 EXCL: Bournemouth working on deal to sign Kepa Arrizabalaga on loan from Chelsea. #AFCB in talks with #CFC + 29yo; top target but options include Ramsdale & also interest from other clubs. Contract 2025 so would need extension before move @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/S1BpInEdYI
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) August 23, 2024
Kepa could be on for unexpected new contract
It’s an interesting situation, as Kepa is in the last year of his contract. As Ornstein says, he would need to agree to a new deal before going out on loan. That would mean Chelsea getting back into bed with a player they’ve been trying to get rid of for the best part of 5 years.
They certainly would want to massively slash his wages, and the new deal would have a release clause that allows both parties to complete a much needed divorce as soon as the right offer is made. We’ve seen arrangements like that made before, which guarantee us a return on the player in the form of a transfer fee.
Kepa could simply refuse to sign a new deal of course, so we would have to make it worthwhile for him by offering something more than what he would get if he leaves right away, while still being less than he’s on now. After a quiet summer, things could suddenly get very interesting on this front now.
