Chelsea are closing in on an agreement with Napoli for the transfer of Kepa Arrizabalaga on a loan deal. The world’s most expensive keeper has been on the bench since the arrival of Edouard Mendy to cover for his error-prone performances.

However, the Premier League side will have to cover 75% of his salary even when he plays in Serie A. Considering that David Ospina has ended his spell with the Azzurri, they need a top quality goalkeeper to compete with Alex Meret.

Kepa Arrizabalaga expected to join Napoli

Not only Timo Werner, in talks with Leipzig and other clubs. Kepa could be the next player to leave Chelsea on loan this summer. 🚨🔵 #CFC

Talks are progressing well between Napoli and Chelsea for Kepa, he’s the main target to replace Ospina as per @DiMarzio. Work in progress. pic.twitter.com/QhMKpgIzoB
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 30, 2022

“In our history, we have always had two quality goalkeepers with a lot of character, then there was a third as reserve, but the first two cannot be reserves. We cannot have one good goalkeeper and a donkey of a second goalkeeper just to keep the first one happy. I doubt Meret could think such a thing.

“If there is an injury for Meret, who goes in goal? A goalkeeper cannot play all 52 matches per season, he has to divide it up,” said Napoli president Aurelio di Laurentiis.

Based on di Laurentiis’ comments, Kepa Arrizabalaga is expected to be the man that will compete with Alex Meret for game time. Whether or not the Spaniard will be the first-choice goalkeeper for the Serie A side this season remains to be seen, but the likelihood is relatively low.