The Chelsea fans were getting increasingly restless as there wasn’t much happening at the club a week or so ago. However, things have changed quite a lot in the last few days.
First, the club confirmed the arrival of Maurizio Sarri as the manager and then announced the signing of Napoli midfielder Jorginho. The Italian was a key figure at Napoli under Sarri and his presence at Chelsea could help Sarri implement his tactics with a bit more ease.
Despite Sarri’s arrival, though, there is still a lot of uncertainty with a few players at the club. While Eden Hazard has been linked with a big-money move to Real Madrid, Thibaut Courtois is now a target for the La Liga side as well.
Courtois has a contract that runs till the summer of 2019 which means Chelsea will have to let go of him this summer or risk losing him for a very cheap price in the winter transfer window or for free next summer if he decides to play out the rest of his contract.
Reports indicate that Courtois could leave for a fee of around £35 million which is not bad for someone as good as him. He recently won the Golden Glove award in the FIFA World Cup and at the age of 26, still has quite a few years of football left in him.
The problem for Chelsea is they’ll lose a top ‘keeper and need to get a replacement as soon as possible.
Chelsea in for Kasper Schmeichel
Another ‘keeper who impressed in the recently concluded FIFA World Cup is Kasper Schmeichel. The Dane has had a few good years for Leicester City and it’s still a surprise that not big side has really gone in for him. Chelsea, though, have been linked of late with him according to reports.
He is 31 and still has a few good years left in him considering ‘keepers peak late on in their career. A pretty all-round ‘keeper, Schmeichel has good distribution but his reflexes are what make him stand out.
His performances against Peru and Croatia in the World Cup will go down in Danish football history and so good were some of his saves that even Peter Schmeichel couldn’t restrain himself from punching the air several times while watching from the stands.
If Courtois does depart, Schmeichel would be the ideal replacement. He has years of experience of playing in the Premier League, so that’s not going to be an issue either.