Bournemouth have signed Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga on loan for a season.
Kepa, 29, is the world's most expensive goalkeeper after joining the Blues from his boyhood club Athletic Bilbao in 2018 for £71million.
This week the Spain international extended his contract with Chelsea, which was due to expire at the end of the 2025 season, by a year.
“I know Andoni Iraola very well, so of course that was a big reason for coming here, he had a very positive opinion about everything here,” Kepa, who played alongside Bournemouth boss Iraola at Bilbao, told the club's YouTube channel.
“I’m really excited to come here and play in front of my fans.
“Hopefully we can win something and it will be a great year.”
He spent last season on loan at Real Madrid, where he played 20 games in place of the injured Thibaut Courtois and won La Liga and the Champions League.
By signing a new deal with Chelsea, the Blues avoided the possibility of losing Kepa on a free transfer at the end of his loan spell with the Cherries.
“We are delighted to be able to bring a player of Kepa’s calibre to AFC Bournemouth,” Cherries chief executive Neil Blake said.
“We were aware of his availability and were keen to take advantage of the opportunity to bring him to the club on loan.
“We believe he will prove to be an exciting addition to our talented goalkeeping department.”
Real manager Carlo Ancelotti was keen to re-sign the Spaniard, but it was dependent on Andriy Lunin leaving the club.
This forced Kepa to train away from manager Enzo Maresca's first team along with 14 other players.
Kepa also rejected an offer to join Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad permanently in July.
bbcsport
Source link
