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Done deal! Robert Sanchez completes move to Chelsea from Brighton.
Chelsea have announced the signing of goalkeeper Robert Sanchez from Brighton.
After looking for a new goalkeeper to compete with Kepa Arrizabalaga, the Blues settled on Sanchez and immediately agreed on a deal for the 25-year-old that is expected to be about £20 million.
Having passed his medical, Sanchez has put pen to paper on a seven-year contract to become Chelsea’s seventh signing of the summer.
“We’re very pleased to welcome Robert to Chelsea and he adds further quality to our goalkeeping unit,” said sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, the latter of whom also joined from Brighton last summer.
“Robert has repeatedly proved himself in the Premier League and been capped by his country. We are excited to watch him work with Mauricio and his coaching team during the season ahead.”
Ben Roberts, the goalkeeping coach for Chelsea, who served as a coach under Graham Potter at both Brighton and Chelsea before being elevated to a more prominent position at Stamford Bridge this summer, worked closely with Sanchez.
Chelsea’s current lead goalkeeping coach is Toni Jimenez, who joined as part of Mauricio Pochettino’s backroom staff.
Rob's rise to the top! 🔵 pic.twitter.com/Nb0PQCIAmB
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 5, 2023
Sanchez departs Brighton with 87 Premier League matches to his name, and it was that experience in England that endeared him to Chelsea’s recruiting team, who were looking for an experienced name to compete with Arrizabalaga.
Robert Sanchez on his move to Chelsea: “Choosing #Chelsea is the best choice I could have made because the opportunity they have presented in front of me is amazing to develop more as a goalkeeper, to keep learning, and to compete for the spot, and show everyone how good I can be…”
“I like the shiny new badge [on the #Chelsea shirt], I think it’s really cool. Different colours depending on the angle you look at it from. I really like it. Stamford Bridge has the history that it has, the legends it has created, I just want to be part of that.”
“The last year I was with Levi [Colwill]. I got a really good friendship now with him. The spell was at Brighton was really good for him, got him ready for what #Chelsea has now. We communicate well. We are good friends outside of the pitch, so we are going to play good on the pitch as well. He’s a top player. The ceiling is the limit for him.”
Sanchez, who spent time in the Brighton academy, also counts as a homegrown player in the Premier League, which is a welcome addition to a Chelsea side that has already said goodbye to Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek this summer.
Read all about it! 🗞
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 5, 2023