Real Madrid to sign Kepa on loan, replace injured Courtois
Real Madrid is set to sign Spanish goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga on loan from Chelsea, according to Fabrizio Romano. There will be no obligation for Real Madrid to make a permanent move for Kepa once the duration of the loan is complete.
The Spanish giants were forced to look for a new goalkeeper following Thibaut Courtois‘ shocking ACL injury on Thursday. This was a massive blow for Los Blancos. Not only is Courtois Madrid’s No. 1, but he is realistically the best goalkeeper in the world.
With Courtois out, Madrid’s next option in goal is Andriy Lunin. Don’t get me wrong, Lunin is a decent keeper, and he started in Real’s 2-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao on the opening day of the 2023-24 season. But this is Real Madrid we are talking about. They want better than decent. They want great.
This is why they made a move for Kepa. Kepa is an elite goalkeeper who can perform to the standard that Real Madrid needs between the sticks.
That is not to say that Kepa is at Courtois’ level. In fact, he is pretty far from it. However, when Kepa is on, he is elite, and with the strength of Real Madrid’s team and the fact that he is returning to his birth country, you have to figure he will do a decent job in Madrid.
With Kepa’s move, Chelsea will now have to utilize new signing Robert Sánchez as the club’s No. 1. Chelsea had already seen goalkeeper Édouard Mendy move to Saudi Arabia earlier in this transfer window. Now, with Kepa on his way out for the year, the Chelsea job looks like it will be Sánchez’s.
It will be interesting to see how Kepa performs back in La Liga. While Madridistas should not expect him to outshine Courtois, they should still feel confident knowing that they will have an elite goalkeeper in net this season.
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