Chelsea shock ‘interest’ in Arsenal star revealed - but Mikel Arteta is unwilling to sell

Chelsea are believed to be interested in a move for Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale - much to the chagrin of Gunners boss Mikel Arteta, who is unwilling to sell the player at this point, reports Ben Jacobs.

Jacobs believes that Ramsdale will only move to Chelsea if the former Sheffield United man ‘really pushes’ to make the switch happen. With Ramsdale currently playing second fiddle to David Raya, who put in a poor performance at the weekend against Chelsea, he could try to force a move if he does not get a fair share of playing time over the Spaniard.

What has been said regarding Aaron Ramsdale’s availability?

Writing on Simon Phillips’ website, Jacobs penned: “A lot of fans ask me whether the club [Chelsea] might try for Aaron Ramsdale in January and it’s true there will be plenty of clubs keeping an eye on his situation, Chelsea included. Ramsdale wants to play to try and push Jordan Pickford for England’s Euro 2024 starting spot in goal.

“And he can’t do that from the bench. But as of now Chelsea haven’t made any kind of serious move. Plus, Mikel Arteta really wants to keep Ramsdale, so a mid-season switch is going to be tough. It could only happen if Ramsdale really pushes.”

Do Chelsea need Aaron Ramsdale?

For as bloated as Chelsea’s squad is, there is a certain position in which they do not have a massive depth of quality in - goalkeeper. They have four ‘keepers in the first team - Robert Sanchez, Djordje Petrovic, Marcus Bettinelli and Lucas Bergstrom. However, of these four, only one of them is currently playing at the level that Chelsea would like (Sanchez).

If the Blues want to bolster the quality they have in the goalkeeper position, they could do far worse than Ramsdale - even if the Gunners are likely to command a hefty fee for his services.