Chelsea remain confident that their goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga will still attract a lot of transfer interest from clubs in the summer despite his disappointing performance in the League Cup final defeat to Liverpool, according to Goal.
It was a devastating evening for the 27-year-old who has been pretty reliable when called upon in the last months.
Thanks to his rediscovering his form and regaining his confidence, Chelsea did not have much trouble dealing with Edouard Mendy’s AFCON absence.
Still, the Senegal international is the clear number one which leaves Arrizabalaga and Chelsea in a rather difficult situation at the moment.
Arrizabalaga seems to be too good — and arguably earns way too much — to be a backup goalkeeper.
Goal claims that Chelsea unsuccessfully tried to offload the former Athletic Bilbao star, either on loan or permanently, in the previous seasons.
The goalkeeper’s League Cup final display certainly did not help, but the club reportedly still believe that there will be plenty of interested parties in the summer.
Whether his performances this season would convince these potential suitors to meet Chelsea’s demands is a completely different story, though.
The Athletic previously claimed that the Spain international’s £170,000-a-week salary proved to be a stumbling block to his Chelsea exit.
Unless he was willing to take a pay cut at a new club, this could be the case again in the summer.
Arrizabalaga, who still holds the title of the most expensive goalkeeper in the world, is under contract at Stamford Bridge until 2025.
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