Chelsea were handed a boost in their pursuit of Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak with Valencia now willing to buy Kepa Arrizabalaga and ease the burden of a hefty fee for a new goalkeeper for the Blues. Frank Lampard have made Oblak his priority this summer and is willing to sell the world’s most expensive goalkeeper to fund the transfer. It, however, remains unclear if Oblak will be eager to move to Stamford Bridge with Atletico manager Diego Simeone ready to block his transfer. But Chelsea are in the market for a new goalkeeper with Lampard unable to trust the error-prone Arrizabalaga. Santi Cazorla Leaves Villarreal, Football Fans Pay Tribute to Spanish Midfield Maestro.

According to latest reports, Atletico Madrid have asked Chelsea to pay Oblak’s buy-out clause of €120 million to sign the goalkeeper. But the Blues are confident of a deal and are preparing a bid of 100 million euros this week. Atleti and Chelsea enjoy a good relationship and have been involved in a number of deals in recent times with Diego Costa, Alvaro Morata and Thibaut Courtois some major deals since 2014. Chelsea are hoping this good relationship between both clubs will make a way for Oblak’s transfer. Kevin Pietersen Hilariously Trolls Yuvraj Singh After Manchester United Lost to Chelsea in FA Cup 2019-0 Semi-Final.

But Chelsea must also offload Arrizabalaga before considering making any bid for Oblak. Reports suggest Valencia have recently enquired about a possible transfer of the Spanish goalkeeper with their No 1 Jasper Cillessen reportedly moving elsewhere. The Spanish club are, however, reluctant to pay a heavy fee for Arrizabalaga and want him on a two-year loan with an option to buy.

Arrizabalaga, who joined Chelsea from Athletic Club in 2018 for a world record €80m, have been in poor form this season leading to Lampard and Chelsea hitting the transfer market for a new goalkeeper. The 25-year-old was initially linked to Sevilla, who too are looking for a new goalkeeper. But the huge transfer fee along with Kepa’s heavy wages put them off. Chelsea’s only option right now remains Valencia, who are only interested in signing Kepa on a two-year loan period.

Meanwhile, Chelsea have already made some big signings so far this summer with RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner the headliner. The club have also brought Hakim Ziyech from Ajax and are heavily linked to Kai Havertz and Nicolas Tagliafico.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 20, 2020 05:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).