Kepa Arrizabalaga has been discussing his move to Chelsea and what persuaded him to swap Bilbao for London.
The Spaniard told AS that the Blues is a club of great stature, with their recent record speaking for itself.
I have felt valued. In the last few years, a lot of Spaniards have done important things here and that’s good for those of us to arrive most recently. This is a great club, who in recent years have won the Champions League, Europa League, the Premier League… it’s a team with great players.
It was an important gamble and I’m happy to take this step. I want to enjoy it.
Kepa was a big-money arrival late in the summer transfer window to replace Thibaut Courtois, who left for Real Madrid.
Real Madrid themselves had previously been heavily linked with a move to Kepa during Zinedine Zidane’s time at the club.
When it looked unlikely that Real would land either David De Gea or Courtois, they looked to wrap up a deal for Kepa in January, but the move fell through.
Kepa became the world’s most expensive goalkeeper when he completed his switch to Stamford Bridge, joining for a reported £72 million. He has been discussing the pressure, or lack of in his mind, that comes with such a fee.
It’s the price it is because the market is like that, too. Higher and higher fees are being paid and I see it as a consequence of the market.
