It has been claimed that Chelsea are willing to match Liverpool's £40m valuation of goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher as he has emerged as a priority target.
The Blues were beaten 3-0 by Brighton & Hove Albion last Friday, a match in which the Londoners failed to produce a single shot on target.
Enzo Maresca's side were also eliminated from the FA Cup by Brighton on February 8, and that leaves the Conference League as his only chance of silverware this season.
The manager and several of his players have faced increasing criticism in recent weeks, with the likes of goalkeeper Robert Sanchez questioned after making high-profile errors against teams such as Manchester City.
Football Insider claim that the Blues are looking to upgrade on Sanchez as a matter of priority, and report that the club are willing to agree to Liverpool's demands for Kelleher in the upcoming summer transfer window.
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Kelleher vs. Sanchez
Sanchez was purchased from Brighton for a fee of £25m in August 2023, but he was left out of the XI in his side's last two Premier League games in favour of Filip Jorgensen.
The Spaniard was brought to the club with expectations that he would help Chelsea play out from the back, but his ability with the ball has been overshadowed by his frantic decision-making.
On the other hand, Kelleher has shown he is comfortable using either foot and has at times seamlessly slotted into Liverpool's lineup whenever Alisson Becker has been absent.
The Irishman's reflexes are also impressive, and he has made numerous important saves during his time at Anfield, including in two EFL Cup finals against Chelsea for the Merseysiders.
Given Giorgi Mamardashvili is set to join Liverpool in the summer - presumably to take the number two spot behind Alisson - Kelleher would likely be open to a move away considering he is unlikely to get much playing time under Arne Slot next term.
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Do Chelsea need to spend less money?
Liverpool's reported demands of £40m does on face value seem prohibitive despite Kelleher's qualities, as it would make him the fifth most expensive goalkeeper of all time.
Additionally, the 26-year-old will only have a year left on his contract in the summer, and spending more on him than Manchester City paid for Ederson and more than Real Madrid paid for Thibaut Courtois would be hard to justify given he has played just 23 Premier League games.
Chelsea also spent £20m on Jorgensen and a £16.5m on Mike Penders during last summer's transfer window, and the continued urge to reinforce could arguably be seen as detrimental to the development of the club's current crop of shot-stoppers.
However, there is no doubting that Maresca will soon have to make a decision about whether he is ready to trust one of his current goalkeepers considering Sanchez's struggles.
Lewis Nolan
