Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has just completed a loan deal which takes him to the Santiago Bernabeu to play for La Liga giants Real Madrid.
Los Blancos’ number one stopper, Thibaut Courtois, has suffered an ACL injury which could keep him out for the entire campaign; and Los Blancos have been pondering a move for Sevilla keeper Yassine Bounou, but on Monday morning they swooped for the Chelsea man. Kepa is the latest big name to leave Stamford Bridge since the arrival of Mauricio Pochettino as head coach, following Kai Havertz, Mason Mount and N’Golo Kante out of the door.
Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy has also headed for pastures new in Saudi Arabia and the Premier League giants have potentially left themselves a little short between the sticks.
Following his £20m transfer from Brighton and Hove Albion, Robert Sanchez took the goalkeeper’s jersey for the Blues’ 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Sunday and he performed pretty well, though Chelsea were dominant for much of the game and he had solid protection from Thiago Silva at the heart of the Blues’ defence.
Pochettino is overseeing a significant change at the Bridge and the signs were encouraging against Jurgen Klopp’s title hopefuls, but I suspect he may be in the market for another keeper in the coming days. Chelsea have a number of promising U21 stoppers but the only experienced back up is 31 year old former Fulham keeper Marcus Bettinelli.
There is an incoming to Chelsea on the cards as Brighton and Hove Albion defensive midfielder Moises Caicedo is set to complete a medical in advance of a planned £115m transfer to West London. He is set to sign an eight year contract, not unusual at Chelsea, and the sale is yet another example of savvy business for the Seagulls, who bought the player for £4.5m just two years ago.
The Blues are also in the hunt for Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia, who has also been tracked by Liverpool. It is likely to come down to the player’s choice and a move to London may appear more attractive than Merseyside. The Premier League 2023 betting odds here at SBOTOP rate Chelsea as sixth favourites to win the title at a price of 26.00, and that could look quite handy if Poch gets his team together quickly.
Over on the East side of the capital city another Saint has made an appearance as Southampton skipper James Wad –Prowse has just completed a £30m move to West Ham United. The 28 year old has been with the South Cast club since the age of eight and he has signed a contract to stay at the London Stadium until 2027. He played in the Saints 4-4 draw with Norwich City on Saturday, but nobody expected a player of his quality to spend a year in the second tier. Ward-Prowse has appeared for the Saints 410 times and scored double figures in both of the last two seasons and he will be a huge player for the Hammers this term. The club is upwardly mobile having won the Europa Conference League and it’s a good move for Ward-Prowse. And the transfer may smooth the way for another West Ham player to exit East London. Manchester City, who opened their league defence with a 3-0 win away to Burnley, are pushing to sign creative midfielder Lucas Paqueta and the player reported to be is keen to move to the Etihad Stadium. He would be a like for like replacement for the departed Riyad Mahrez though, like every player Pep Guardiola buys, he may have to bide his time in Manchester if he makes that move.
The Hammers value Paqueta at £85m and the Citizens are well short with their first approach.
In other London based Premier League 2023 news Harry Kane’s move to Bayern Munich has ended a saga which lasted at least three years and now Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou is looking forward to a bright future without Tottenham’s former talisman. The new head coach expressed delight at his team’s resilience in their opening match away to Brentford, which ended in a 2-2 draw. The visitors enjoyed 69 per cent possession and had 18 shots at the Brentford goal and Postecoglou believes they can thrive without the distraction of Kane’s protracted move: “I think that 2-1 down, having conceded a penalty and an own goal, it would have been very easy for us to drop our heads but I never sensed that in the group,” said the happy boss.
A draw away to Thomas Frank’s dangerous Bees is a decent start for Tottenham and, I must say, that type of spirit isn’t exactly Spursy!
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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