Bellingham and Mount react to Kepa message ahead of Chelsea return – ‘a pleasure’
Kepa Arrizabalaga returns to Chelsea with an future uncertain after his loan spell at Bournemouth came to an end.
Bournemouth‘s hugely successful campaign came to an end with a 2-0 victory over Leicester, albeit this was only their third win of a 13-game stretch which saw the Cherries drop out of European contention.
Andoni Iraola‘s side still achieved their best ever Premier League points tally with 56 in the form of 15 wins and 11 draws, to finish ninth and see several players’ stocks and reputations climb significantly.
The strides taken by Dean Huijsen have already resulted in a £50million transfer to Real Madrid after just one season at the Vitality Stadium, and Kepa is another player whose future Cherries career is uncertain.
Kepa sends Bournemouth farewell message
Loaned to Bournemouth in August after a bit-part spell at Real Madrid in 2023–24, Kepa’s reputation at Premier League level has largely been restored with performances which have left Chelsea fans envious.
Bournemouth are keen to re-open talks with Chelsea as soon as possible over a permanent transfer for Kepa this summer, but as things stand, the Spaniard will return to Stamford Bridge with no deal in place.
The 30-year-old reflected on his south coast spell in a post on Instagram (28 May), which was liked by former team-mates Mason Mount and Jude Bellingham as several Bournemouth players left comments.
Justin Kluivert, Alex Scott, Antoine Semenyo and others all left comments on the forgotten Chelsea man’s post, which read: “We fought it. We enjoyed it.
“Grateful to be part of this team. A big Thank you for all your support cherries!
“It has been a pleasure. Up the cherries.”
Chelsea ready to sanction permanent Kepa transfer
Although Kepa’s form has arguably been better than Chelsea’s goalkeeping options of Robert Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen, it’s unlikely that the Bournemouth loanee has a long-term future in West London.
Bournemouth are far from the only club keen on Kepa ahead of the summer transfer window and could miss out to Bundesliga heavyweights Bayer Leverkusen, but Iraola will be confident he can seal a return.
With Caoimhin Kelleher and Aaron Ramsdale also on Bournemouth’s transfer shortlist, Iraola is prepared to miss out on Kepa, but he’ll also be hopeful that the Spaniard chooses the Cherries after his first ‘good’ season in years.