Chelsea offer £17m for Filip Jorgensen, with Villarreal goalkeeper keen on joining Blues to compete with Robert Sanchez for No 1 role
- Jorgensen played 37 games in all competitions for the La Liga side last year
- The 22-year-old goalkeeper is a regular for the Danish Under-21 team
- Comes as host to stars including Romelu Lukaku left out of pre-season tour
Chelsea have offered £17million plus bonuses for Villarreal goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen in a bid to bolster their goalkeeping capabilities.
The 22-year-old is believed to be keen to join the West London club and challenge current world No.1 Robert Sanchez amid growing interest from Saudi club Al-Ittihad.
Jorgensen was the La Liga club’s first choice last season, making 37 appearances in all competitions and narrowly missing out on a European Championship.
The 22-year-old is a regular for the Danish Under-21 team, having previously represented Sweden at various youth levels. Chelsea are also reportedly offering £1.7 million (€2 million) in add-ons as part of the deal.
Mail Sport has learned that Villarreal want £21million.
Chelsea have offered £17m plus bonuses for Villarreal goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen (pictured, May)
The Villarreal goalkeeper would like to compete with Robert Sanchez (pictured, in February) for the number 1 shirt
The Danish youth international is one of several goalkeeping options that Blues manager Enzo Maresca (pictured last Thursday) has in his sights.
Meanwhile, it looks set to leave Chelsea this summer after six years at the club
Since succeeding Mauricio Pochettino in the Stamford Bridge dugout, manager Enzo Maresca has focused on increasing depth between the posts, with Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen also being linked with the club.
Djordje Petrovic and Robert Sanchez arrived last summer from New England Revolution and Brighton respectively.
Sanchez was initially the club’s No.1, but a knee injury during the match against Everton in December ruled him out for much of the season.
Petrovic provided excellent support in his absence, making 31 appearances for the Blues in total, starting in the EFL Cup final against Liverpool in February.
Chelsea also still employ the most expensive goalkeeper of all time.
Kepa Arrizabalaga spent last season on loan at Real Madrid and there are several clubs keen to sign him this summer as it looks increasingly unlikely he will stay in west London.
The Spain international has only one year left on his contract and has not trained for the first team since his pre-season at Cobham.
Interestingly, Kepa is also being watched by Al-Ittihad, who have earmarked both goalkeepers as alternatives to Manchester City’s Ederson. The Brazilian’s transfer fee could be deemed too expensive for the club to pursue.
The latest development in Chelsea’s transfer window follows the absences of Romelu Lukaku, Arrizabalaga, Trevoh Chalobah, Cesare Casadei, David Datro Fofana and Malang Sarr during pre-season, fuelling speculation that they could leave Stamford Bridge for good.
Chelsea’s £97.5million signing Romelu Lukaku is widely expected to leave after a two-year loan absence
Trevoh Chalobah (pictured left, in May) is a surprise name who was left out of the team’s pre-season tour and who may now be on his way out
Cesare Casadei and David Datro Fofana are among the other big names left out of the squad
Malang Sarr (pictured, in 2022) trained with the under-21 team last season after a loan deal fell through
The club have named a squad of 28 players who will fly to the United States for their opening match against Wrexham in California on Wednesday.
Enzo Maresca’s team will next take on Celtic, Club America and Premier League rivals Manchester City, before concluding the tour with a match against Real Madrid in Charlotte, North Carolina on August 7.
The six players joined Chelsea for a combined fee of £190million, although Chalobah cost next to nothing as he came through the club’s youth system, while Sarr left as a free agent after his contract with Nice expired.