Kepa can be Chelsea’s starter for years to come
With the summer transfer deadline approaching, Chelsea keeper Thibaut Courtois appears to be heading to Real Madrid. Who have the Blues brought in to replace him?
According to the Telegraph, Chelsea have agreed to pay £71 million to trigger the release clause of Spanish keeper Kepa Arrizabalga. Currently at Athletic Bilbao, the 23-year-old Kepa will have the task of replacing Thibaut Courtois. Courtois has made headlines in recent days as he appears to attempt to force his way to Real Madrid.
The fee Chelsea have agreed to pay for Kepa to join the club is the highest paid for a goalkeeper by any club in the world. The figure eclipses the £67 million Liverpool paid for former Roma keeper Alisson last month.
Kepa will have large shoes to fill if Courtois does indeed leave Chelsea. The Belgian has been at the club for seven years, though three of them were spent on loan at Atletico Madrid. Courtois has won two Premier League titles, a League Cup and an FA Cup while at Chelsea. Kepa will undoubtedly be evaluated on his success or failure to help the Blues win that kind of silverware during his tenure.
With only two seasons of competition in a top league, Kepa will be an unknown quantity for many supporters. This is especially true when he’s compared to some of the other keepers Chelsea were rumored to approach, like Jan Oblak and Kasper Schmeichel, both of whom have Champions League experience. On the other hand, at 23 years old Kepa is very young and therefore can be a centerpiece for the Chelsea squad for many years to come.
Kepa appeared in 30 games for Bilbao last season, and recorded seven clean sheets. He personally conceded 40 goals, and Bilbao were seventh in La Liga in terms of goals conceded. Bilbao may have finished near the bottom of the table in 16th, but Kepa was one of the few constant positives of their season.
He came through Bilbao’s youth system, staying there from 2004 to 2012. On loan at Ponferradina in 2015, he made his first professional appearance in a draw against Racing de Santander. His first game with Bilbao in La Liga came in September of 2016, when he helped the club to a 1-0 win over Deportivo.
Kepa had been linked with Real Madrid in recent months, and he nearly transferred to Los Blancos in January for roughly £18 million. However, the deal never went though and Kepa instead opted to sign a long-term contract with Bilbao that included the release clause Chelsea will be paying.
With a fee as high as the reported value, Kepa will come in with high expectations. Supporters will expect him to fill in (and possibly surpass) Courtois, a tall order for a 23-year-old player who will be adjusting to playing in a new league in a different country.
Time will tell if Kepa will live up to that fee, but the move was one that Chelsea desperately needed to make. Courtois has failed to report to the club in recent days in an attempt to expedite a move to Real Madrid.
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Moving Courtois and not signing a suitable replacement would mean that Chelsea would be without a first-choice keeper at the start of this season. Since the transfer window closes on Thursday (several weeks earlier than in previous seasons), making a move for a keeper was of the utmost importance.
Kepa’s signing does several things for Chelsea. For one, it gives them an immediate replacement for Courtois and ensures that there won’t be a massive void in their squad when the season starts this weekend. Two, it also gives them a young player who could stay with the club for several years to come. Chelsea signed Courtois as a teenager and he played, after time on loan with Atletico Madrid, and excelled, at the club for several years. The Blues are hoping for a similar situation with Kepa.
Chelsea have big plans for Kepa, even in the immediate future. Marca reports that new manager Maurizio Sarri is reportedly planning to have Kepa make his debut later this week in Chelsea’s first game of the season against Huddersfield.
It’s the beginning of a new era at Chelsea, and Kepa will be a large part of it – for better or worse.