Chelsea target Alphonse Areola buys London home with PSG stay in doubt
According to the Daily Star, Chelsea target Alphonse Areola has brought a house in London as an exit from PSG looms.
The French giants are keen to offload the 27-year-old following a year-long loan spell at Real Madrid. The Frenchman returns a La Liga champion but his future looks to lie away from the Parc des Princes.
With Real Madrid not keen to make the deal permanent, Chelsea could step in and bring him to West London.
The Blues are on the lookout for a new number one following the unconvincing displays put up by Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The Spaniard became the world’s most expensive keeper when Chelsea paid a whopping £71m to sign him in 2018. It is fair to say he has failed to set the Bridge alight, so much so that veteran Willy Caballero was preferred in goal, most recently in the FA Cup semifinals.
The prospect of him moving to Chelsea received fresh fuel after his wife posted a picture of them outside their new London home.
She went on to add that it was a dream for the couple to own a home in the English capital. The house was brought nine months back but has only recently been furnished for the couple to move in with their two children.
Having come through the PSG youth system, Areola has made 107 appearances for the Parisians. He has kept an impressive 53 clean sheets.
Having spent a number of seasons out on loan, he replaced Kevin Trapp as the first-choice keeper for PSG in 2017. However, the signing of Italian legend Gianluigi Buffon the following summer pushed Areola to a rotational role.
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An excellent shot-stopper, Areola has the experience of playing at the highest level in the Champions League. Questions must, however, be asked if he is necessarily the player the Blues want as the last line of defence.
Chelsea have struggled defensively this season. Although Areola is good, he has struggled both at PSG and Real of late. We can certainly do better when it comes to signing a keeper.
It makes more sense for the club to sign him as a replacement for Caballero over Kepa. Areola was a part of the French squad that won the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
