Online Reporter
CHELSEA are considering a deal to sign Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
The Blues have been offered the Argentina international, 33, and are in talks with his camp following Robert Sanchez’s poor performance against Fulham on Monday night.
Martinez has been training separately from Unai Emery’s squad following the arrival of new No1 Zion Suzuki and is valued at around £8million by the Europa League winners.
Juventus were close to a deal for the former Arsenal keeper earlier this summer but that collapsed leaving him in limbo.
World Cup winner Martinez pushed to leave Villa Park a year ago, hoping for a move to Manchester United, though that never materialised.
Chelsea’s two current senior goalkeepers are Sanchez and Mike Penders, who spent last season with sister club Strasbourg.
The Blues have insisted they were happy to go into the season with that pair, but Sanchez’s display at Craven Cottage, which included a costly mistake for Josh King’s goal, appears to have changed that stance.
Xabi Alonso is yet to decide whether or not Sanchez or Penders will start their Carabao Cup game against Luton on Thursday night.
But he added that he has not felt it necessary to speak to his No1 about the mistakes against Fulham.
Alonso said: “No, normal conversations. We have talked more about team things, about what we did well, what we have to do better. So it was more about understanding the context.”
This could be the latest in a number of deals between Stamford Bridge and Villa Park this summer. Chelsea have already signed Morgan Rogers for a British-record £117m from Villa. Alejandro Garnacho moved the other way on loan while talks are progressing over a deal for Nicolas Jackson to join him in the Midlands.
Both clubs must comply with Premier League and Uefa rules around transfers this summer, with both operating under settlement agreements with the European governing body.
There is also Uefa’s swap rules to consider. If clubs sell players to each other within a 45-day period they are treated as a player swap – not as two separate transactions.
Jackson is not able to move on loan as Garnacho has already done so and the Premier League do not allow a club to loan two players from the same parent club at one time. — Sun.
