Chelsea have reportedly identified Lille goalkeeper Mike Maignan as a possible target, with Kepa Arrizabalaga facing an uncertain future at Stamford Bridge.
Kepa joined Chelsea from Athletic Bilbao for a world-record fee of £71.6million back in 2018 but the 25-year-old has struggled to live up to his enormous price tag and has been heavily linked with a move away from west London.
The Spain international had a dismal campaign between the sticks for the Blues and even lost his place to 38-year-old Willy Caballero in Frank Lampard’s starting XI after English football returned in March.
As a result, Chelsea have drawn up a shortlist of ‘keepers who could come in and challenge or even replace their record signing – and a new name has emerged as a potential candidate for the number one jersey.
According to Sky Sports, Maignan is firmly on Chelsea’s radar after an eye-catching season Lille in Ligue 1.
The report claims the 25-year-old Frenchman could be available for a fee of around €30m (£27m).
Maignan is the latest in a long line of ‘keepers – including Jan Oblak, Andre Onana, Nick Pope and Ben Foster – to be linked with Chelsea over the last few weeks but Lampard has not yet ruled out the possibility of Kepa staying at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, keen to make up for lost time in the wake of the club’s two-window transfer ban, has sanctioned a spending spree this summer, with Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech arriving for a combined total of around £80m.
And the Blues are far from finished in the market. Deals for Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva and Kai Havertz are also expected to be completed over the coming days.
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