Chelsea in race against time to sell Thibaut Courtois

Thibaut Courtois has become one of the world's best keepers during his time as Chelsea's No. 1.

• Blues keeper keen on move away from Stamford Bridge.
• Belgian star would leave on a free next summer if he stays at Chelsea.

Chelsea face the prospect of losing Thibaut Courtois on a free transfer in a year’s time if they do not sell the Belgium international this summer. Arab News understands that Courtois has rejected the offer of a new contract that would have made him the best paid goalkeeper in the English Premier League, telling friends that he wants to leave Chelsea in the current transfer window if possible.
    Ideally, Courtois would like a move to Madrid where his two young children are based. While Real Madrid have a long standing interest in the 26-year-old, the European champions have made no concrete attempt to sign him this summer and are understood to be closer to bidding for Brazil international Allison
   An alternative route back to Spanish football would be to rejoin Atletico Madrid, the club where Courtois won three major trophies while on a long-term loan from Chelsea between 2011 and 2014. Atletico’s current No. 1, Jan Oblak, has been targeted by several leading clubs aware of the Slovenian’s €100 million ($117 million) release clause and may have to be replaced this summer.
    According to a Chelsea source, the London club has placed a similar valuation on Courtois, who also attracted interest from Paris Saint-Germain before the French club entered discussions with free agent Gianluigi Buffon. Chelsea’s chances of realizing such a sum for an individual prepared to run down his final year of contract if necessary are minimal.
    The highest transfer fee ever achieved for a goalkeeper remains the €52 million Juventus paid Parma for Buffon over a decade and a half ago. While that record is expected to fall this summer, Chelsea’s position is further weakened by the Premier League’s decision to unilaterally close its window for incoming players on August 9 — more than three weeks ahead of the rest of Europe.
    As a result, there are just nine weeks remaining for Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia to secure an acceptable fee for Courtois, currently on World Cup duty with Belgium. Under Granovskaia, the club has focused on maximizing its income from transfer activity, rarely allowing players with significant resale value to leave under freedom of contract.
   Chelsea are not the only leading Premier League club with a goalkeeping issue to resolve. Liverpool have been looking to secure a new goalkeeper since last year, with their weakness in the position further highlighted by the pair of Loris Karius errors that resulted in two Champions League Final goals last month.
   Oblak and Allison are both high on Liverpool’s wishlist. Atletico began readying themselves for an attempt from Liverpool to trigger Oblak’s release clause in the January window and have continued to insist that the 25-year-old will not leave unless his €100 million price tag is met. For his part, Oblak would prefer to move to a club with a recent history of winning silverware.
   AS Roma want a similar sum for Allison, whose personal preference is to join Madrid. With Liverpool already committed to spending well over €100 million on transfer fees for midfielders Fabinho and Naby Keita and working on other signings, Fenway Sports Group are considered unlikely to sanction a club-record fee for either Allison or Oblak.
   Germany international Bernd Leno is also under consideration at Anfield. A more economical option as Bayer Leverkusen have already secured “a high quality successor” in Lukas Hradecky and have publicly stated their readiness to sell, Leno has been priced at €25m. Alternative options include Barcelona reserve Jasper Cillessen, who has a €60 million release clause.