Chelsea have decided to put the proposed Thibaut Courtois to Real Madrid move on hold, as we are struggling to sign a suitable replacement. Courtois has become the contract rebel at Chelsea, as he is refusing to sign a new contract.
The blues are seriously contemplating selling the player who has less than a year left on his contract. However, Chelsea are also aware that the club do not possess an able replacement for the Belgian international.
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford was identified as a potential signing, but Chelsea have received a major setback with the England international opening up talks for a new contract with Everton.
Alisson Becker was a transfer target a few months ago but Liverpool were able to grab him for a whopping £67 million.
Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak is a potential candidate to replace Courtois, but the only way to sign him is to activate the release clause of £89 million.
The situation has led to a stalemate with regards to Courtois’ situation.
Those who stream football through here expected a disastrous 2018-19 campaign for Chelsea, but Maurizio Sarri has brought about a new lease of life. This could be one of the factors that keeps Courtois at Stamford Bridge – at least for this campaign.
The 26-year-old has apparently informed the Chelsea that he would have no issues about leaving on a free next summer if the club are reluctant to sell him now. Chelsea were ready to sell Courtois for around £35 million. The transfer fee could have been substantially greater if his contract had a longer expiry date.
As it stands, Courtois clearly seems to have a personal agreement with Real Madrid, who are seeking a long-term replacement for Iker Casillas for quite a while. In fact, Courtois was seeking a move to the Spanish capital even when he was on loan at Atletico Madrid.
There is a potential likelihood of the deal collapsing altogether and Courtois making a U-turn to sign a contract. He has previously admitted that all options are open to him, but few players turned down the potential of a Real Madrid move. Furthermore, Courtois has always been interested in a move back to Spain due to climate and family reasons.
Courtois is starting to enter into the peak of his career at 26 years of age. Chelsea still have a strong Belgian contingent and the ability to retain Eden Hazard can help the club go a long way towards persuading Courtois to sign a new contract.
