How to solve a problem like Kepa: Chelsea are faced with the expensive concierge puzzle

As a goalkeeper, being dropped once in the course of a season before being restored can be considered as a warning from a manager to abandon your ideas.

Being dropped twice, however, suggests that patience has run out, particularly when that second chance comes on the day of the club’s biggest campaign game.

This is exactly the situation in which Kepa Arrizabalaga is at Chelsea.

The world’s most expensive goalkeeper was left out for five games in February by Frank Lampard, but his ascension into the initial lineup suggested that he would be given at least time to prove that his doubts were wrong.

After being named again on the bench for last week’s unmissable clash with Wolves in the Premier League, the writing is now on the wall for the Spanish national team.

He will likely be among the substitutes at the Wembley stadium again on Saturday when the Blues face Arsenal in the FA Cup final, with Willy Caballero being preferred for both that game and their upcoming Champions League clash with Bayern Munich.

There is also the possibility that Kepa played his last game in a Chelsea shirt. Having paid 71 million pounds ($ 91 million) for him just two years ago, he threatens to be one of the blues’ most expensive mistakes.

It is understood that Lampard has yet to tell any player that they are exceeding the requirements as it aims to avoid distractions ahead of the final.

But with the club hierarchy openly looking for possible substitutions, it seems that Kepa is now on loan.

Performance consultant Petr Cech and goalkeeper scout Christophe Lollichon provided their expertise in finding a new number 1, but options are scarce.

Jan Oblak at Atletico Madrid was highlighted as a potential target, although Atleti would not accept an offer lower than the international release clause of 120 million euros (110 million pounds / 137.5 million dollars).

Nick Pope has also been discussed in Burnley, but the Clarets are unlikely to be willing to sell a player who kept 15 clean Premier League games last season.

Andre Onana of Ajax, meanwhile, would be open to move to the English capital, but with subscriptions to other locations – such as Kai Havertz and Ben Chilwell – a priority, Chelsea does not want to spend large sums, particularly if he cannot download Kepa. .

The 25-year-old still has five years remaining with his £ 170,000 a week contract in West London, with Chelsea director Marina Granovskia keen to get back the money the club paid for Kepa if they sell this summer.

Valencia showed interest in hiring him with a two-year loan agreement, but the Blues want a permanent sale as they aim to remain financially stable in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Chelsea face a summer in which very few top clubs other than themselves are trying to sign a new first-choice goalkeeper, while Kepa’s statistics are not interesting enough for potential buyers.

Based on Opt for Goals expected on the target model, Kepa conceded 11 more goals in the Premier League than the model would have expected, which ranks him among the last shots of the division in 2019-2020.

He has saved only 53.5 percent of the shots he has faced, a percentage that ranks as the second worst of the Premier League goalkeepers to play 10 or more games in a single campaign since 2003-04. The worst belongs to the current Chelsea goalkeeper coach, Hilario.

These performances saw the former man of the athletic club become the target of a #KepaOut social media campaign, with a vocal minority of supporters keen to clarify that they no longer want to be part of their team.

That abuse is unlikely to aid the confidence of a man whose last action in a Chelsea shirt ended in a reprimand from his own defenders for not claiming a cross against Liverpool after conceding five goals at Anfield.

“I have a long, difficult reflection on everything, not just on individual positions, but on how we are as a team,” said Lampard after the victory over the Wolves when asked about Kepa. “The idea that we haven’t kept a clean sheet is definitely not just a reflection of the goalkeeper, but something we have to work on as a team.

“Today I don’t want to locate him on Kepa. Kepa’s decision was a choice, probably given the recent shape and the recent situation was a difficult time for him.”

Kepa has already overcome challenges in his short Chelsea career. Saturday, of course, will see him return to the scene of his most famous moment in England after he refused to be replaced in the 2019 Carabao Cup final.

Despite the same public conflict with Maurizio Sarri, he was able to revive his reputation for the rest of the campaign. This time he and Lampard seem to be at the point of no return.

Whether that means he won’t be at the club in September, however, is another matter. Selling the world’s most expensive goalkeeper during a pandemic is far from easy.