Frank Lampard considering not to use misfiring Kepa Arrizabalaga for the rest of the season and expected be replace the Spaniard in summer
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard is reportedly considering not to field first choice keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga in the posts again, and has asked Chelsea to sign his replacement in the summer.
Kepa was known to be a fine goal-keeper under Maurizio Sarri since his £71million world record signing from Athletic Bilbao in the summer of 2018 but has struggled to discover his form this season under Frank Lampard.
This term, his mistakes have caused Chelsea to lose valuable points in the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League.
He was dropped from Chelsea’s starting lineup against Leicester City in the EPL last Saturday that saw Willy Caballero got the nod in posts.
That decision has increase speculations about Kepa’s future at Chelsea, and Spanish source Cope have already claimed that Frank Lampard is not ready to select Kepa in posts for the remainder of the season and has ordered Chelsea to get him another keeper in the summer transfer window.
There is widely held believe that Kepa could have played a big part to save Chelsea from their 2-2 draw against London rivals Arsenal last month but he was not right up there, and Lampard talked about his performance- which in a way was a piece of advice that could follow by a sudden decision.
Asked about his goalkeeper’s performance in Arsenal’s draw, Lampard said at his post-match press conference: ‘I know there’s a focus on him at the minute. I think that’s top-line football.
‘With his feet a couple of times today he took too long and nearly gave it away. And sometimes that can change the momentum of a game. ‘So that’s something obviously that he’ll know and has to look at – and we have to look at.
‘And yeah, it’s normal. Any player in a position, particularly goalkeepers, people will look at you and that’s when you stand up and show the mettle that you’ve got. ‘So I think he’s not the only one.
‘We’re in fourth position, which is seen as being pretty good, but I know and we know that there should be another 10 points on the board at least on performance. So all of us need to look at this finer details.’
If anything is to go by, Frank Lampard is taking a decision to axe Kepa from Chelsea starting XI, and Leicester keeper Kasper Schmeichel and Crystal Palace’s Vicente Guaita are on the goal-keeping transfer list of Lampard.
Which he could replace Kepa with one of these or any one who emerges later to suite what Lampard would be looking for.
