Former Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has revealed he left the club this summer after growing disillusioned with Todd Boehly’s ‘project’.
The Spanish international joined Real Madrid on loan last month, with Los Blancos signing him to replace Thibaut Courtois after the Belgian ruptured his ACL.
He has made two appearances for Real Madrid, keeping one clean sheet and conceding one goal as Carlo Ancelotti’s side sit on top of the La Liga table.
Speaking to Spanish radio COPE about his move to the Spanish capital, Kepa delivered a thinly veiled criticism of Boehly’s spending spree and admitted he did not have to think twice about leaving Stamford Bridge because he needed a new challenge.
“I felt it was time for a change of scenery,” he said via Sportsmail.
“I wanted to stay, but I felt that the project was not the right one.”
The 28-year-old, who became the most expensive goalkeeper in history when he completed a £72m move from Athletic Bilbao in 2018, also revealed Chelsea coach Mauricio Pochettino wanted to keep him at the club following the departure of Eduoard Mendy.
But with the Blues spending £25m to bring in Robert Sanchez from Brighton this summer, Kepa felt he needed a change.
“Yes, it was very fast [move to Real Madrid],” he told Marca.
“It’s true that Pochettino wanted me to stay, and he told me that I was going to play, that he trusted me, but I thought that a change would be good for me; I wanted a change.
“Thomas Tuchel called me. We were close to going to Munich.
But according to Kepa, a dream move to Madrid put every other interest on the back burner,
“When Madrid calls you, everything changes,” he told COPE.
“My signing was closed in just a few hours and a couple of calls.”
