Donnarumma talk accelerates as Chelsea propose swap deal with Milan
Chelsea are willing to offer Kepa Arrizabalaga to AC Milan in an offer of a direct goalkeeper swap with Gianluigi Donnarumma, according to a report.
Reports emerged this week that Chelsea had opened talks with Milan over the chance to sign Donnarumma. The Italian keeper is out of contract next summer, potentially opening up an opportunity.
Chelsea are looking for a replacement for Kepa, who has not lived up to expectations since joining two years ago for a world record fee for a goalkeeper.
Frank Lampard dropped the Spaniard on more than one occasion last season due to errors. And reports suggest he is now looking to offload him.
Burnley’s Nick Pope had appeared to be the main target, until Football Insider revealed that Chelsea were in discussions over Donnarumma. And the same outlet now claims that Chelsea have offered Kepa to Milan as part of a swap deal.
According to the report, Chelsea will send Kepa on loan to Milan in order to get Donnarumma in return. The deal for the Italian would be also be a loan, but with a view to a permanent transfer (which would presumably have to be agreed before Donnarumma’s contract expires in 2021).
Donnarumma has five years of experience in the Milan first team after making his first team debut aged 16. The 21-year-old has 16 caps for Italy and more than 200 appearances at club level.
Chelsea are having difficulty finding a buyer prepared to pay their £50m+ asking price for Kepa, hence their exploration of loaning him out instead.
They are also struggling to find the funds to buy Donnarumma up front after a summer of big spending, which is why they would be looking to delay the payment for any potential permanent transfer.
CHELSEA WILLING TO SELL KANTE
As well as Kepa, another first team player who could be on the way out of Stamford Bridge is N’Golo Kante.
With Chelsea having spent big on Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech and Ben Chilwell this summer – and still pursuing a deal for Kai Havertz – they will need to balance the books by making some sales.
And reports claim that they could consider selling Kante if the price is right.