Just when everyone expected Brazilian defensive midfielder Jorginho to complete a move to Manchester City, given the reigning Premier League champions had been chasing the player for some considerable time, he opted to join Chelsea instead for £50m plus £7m in potential add-ons, and was announced on the same day as new Blues boss, Maurizio Sarri – both arriving from Italian side Napoli.

Image Source: @ChelseaFC via Twitter

There’s no doubting that Jorginho may have been swayed by Sarri taking the managerial post at Stamford Bridge, given the experienced Italian coach has been hugely instrumental in how well the 26-year-old midfielder has improved his game over the last few seasons in Serie A. However, despite a transfer fee being agreed with City, Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis suggested that the player simply preferred the option of living in London, rather than Manchester.

The second outlay made by Chelsea was somewhat forced by the will of Thibaut Courtois, who was busy engineering a move to Real Madrid with his agents. As such, Chelsea were left with the need to bring in a quality replacement between the posts late in the transfer window, which led to them splashing out on Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Image Source: @kepa_46 via Twitter

The £71.6 million (€80m) fee paid to Athletic Club Bilbao became the international transfer record for a goalkeeper, thanks in no small part to the Bilbao side’s habitual refusal to negotiate their release clause valuation. Nevertheless, the odds on Chelsea to win the league 2019 are boosted by such important additions to their squad, especially amongst the betting exchanges.

Chelsea fans and football pundits alike have already struggled to pronounce the surname of another Basque Spaniard, Cesar Azpilicueta, since the former Osasuna player arrived via Marseille in 2012. Learning how to pronounce Arrizabalaga might be just as tricky for some, so given his first name of ‘Kepa’ is much easier, that’s more likely how the hugely promising 23-year-old goalkeeper will be known.

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Another player arriving from LaLiga was Croatian international, Mateo Kovačić, who joined on loan for the 2018-19 season from Real Madrid. The 24-year-old is a highly versatile and talented player, able to operate as an orthodox central midfielder, or as a deep-lying playmaker. However, his playing time has been limited, mostly due to the exceptional form of his fellow countryman, Luka Modric.

Although there is no option to buy clause in the loan deal from the Spanish giants, comments by Kovačić himself via Twitter suggest the player might looking to secure a more permanent move, if he can impress sufficiently during the current campaign. If the Croatian can adapt well enough to the Premier League, don’t be surprised to see Chelsea haggling with Real Madrid over a deal at the end of the season.