Chelsea have two more matches left to play in the Premier League season as they attempt to secure Europa League football for the 2024/25 campaign.
The Blues face Brighton & Hove Albion and Bournemouth in their last two games in the division and could finish as high as sixth if results go their way.
Mauricio Pochettino's side did not have European football to contend with this season, after the club's struggles in the 2022/23 campaign, but the Argentine could lead the London giants back to Europe with a strong end to this term.
Whilst the focus will mainly be on the last couple of Premier League matches, to achieve the highest possible finish, there will also be one eye on the upcoming summer transfer window.
Chelsea have the opportunity to bolster their squad once again over the coming months to improve the team ahead of next season, and a new goalkeeper appears to be on the agenda for Todd Boehly and his team.
Chelsea's interest in LaLiga colossus
Earlier this month, Football Insider claimed that the Blues are interested in a deal to sign Atletico Madrid colossus Jan Oblak to be their new number one.
The report stated that the Premier League side are plotting a bid to land the Slovenia international in the summer transfer window to compete with Dorde Petrovic and Roberto Sanchez between the sticks at Stamford Bridge.
It was revealed that the club have been keeping tabs on the LaLiga star for many years as 'a number' of goalkeepers have failed to enjoy a successful spell in London.
Football Insider added that Atletico Madrid could be willing to allow the veteran giant to move on this summer as his sale could fund their own spending spree to bolster Diego Simeone's squad.
The report also claimed that a deal to sign the 31-year-old star could be easier to iron out than it would be to bring Aaron Ramsdale, one of their other targets, in from Premier League rivals Arsenal.
However, there was no mention of how much it would take to secure his services as Football Insider did not name an asking price for the Slovenian titan.
Even if a fee is agreed, Chelsea would need to agree on a contract with the player, who Capology claims is on around £345k-per-week with the Spanish giants.
If Boehly and Pochettino can get a move over the line for Oblak, the Blues could finally land a number one who is worthy of replacing Thibaut Courtois between the sticks.
Chelsea's post-Thibaut Courtois struggles
The Belgian superstar, who currently plays for Real Madrid, made 154 appearances for Chelsea during his time as the club's number one between 2014 and 2018.
Courtois kept 58 clean sheets in that time and won four major trophies, including two Premier League titles, one FA Cup, and one League Cup.
The giant shot-stopper helped the Blues to win two top-flight trophies with his ability between the sticks, keeping 49 clean sheets in 126 league matches for the club.
18/19
Kepa
19/20
Kepa
20/21
Edouard Mendy
21/22
Edouard Mendy
22/23
Kepa
23/24
Dorde Petrovic
As you can see in the table above, Chelsea have not had a consistent first-choice number one in goal over the course of more than two seasons since Courtois left to join Real Madrid in the summer of 2018.
Kepa had two years as the first-choice before being replaced by Edouard Mendy, who enjoyed two seasons before being displaced by the Spaniard he had taken over from in the first place.
This season, Dorde Petrovic has been the number one since taking over from former Brighton man Robert Sanchez, who started 16 Premier League games earlier this term.
The fluctuation between the sticks for Chelsea has not been healthy, as the gloves have been passed on too often and there has not been any stability at the back.
They could now fix that with a summer swoop for Oblak, who has the quality to be the long-term number one at Stamford Bridge moving forward.
Why Chelsea should sign Jan Oblak
The Atletico star turned 31 in January and, as a goalkeeper, still has plenty of years left ahead of him to be a quality option for the club on a long-term deal.
Thiago Silva, 39, has made 35 appearances for the Blues in all competitions and is the perfect example of a player in his early 30s not being an issue, as they could still have many more seasons left in them at the top level.
Oblak has been a sensational performer in LaLiga over the years and has the quality to be Chelsea's undisputed first-choice between the sticks for a long time, and finally replace Courtois as an elite goalkeeper at Stamford Bridge.
Since the start of the 2017/18 campaign, the Slovenian star has conceded a staggering 35.2 fewer goals than expected based on the post-shot xG of the shots against him over that time.
This shows that he has been an exceptional shot-stopper over the years as the Atletico colossus has consistently bailed his defence out by keeping out high xG shots, that average or below-average goalkeepers would have been expected to have let in.
To that point, Simeone once claimed that Oblak "decides games" in the same way that Lionel Messi, who was playing for Barcelona at the time, did, due to his incredible shot-stopping ability, which is backed up by the aforementioned statistics.
Appearances
21
34
Sofascore rating
6.93
7.01
Save percentage
66%
70%
Goals prevented
-8.43
-1.45
Ball recoveries
6.6
7.3
Error led to goal
2
0
As you can see in the table above, Oblak has significantly outperformed Chelsea's current number one, Petrovic, in terms of shot-stopping and being a reliable player with the ball at his feet.
The experienced ace has not made a single error directly leading to a goal for the opposition, whereas the Serbian has made two, and he could arrive in London this summer to take over as the undisputed number one.
If Oblak can continue the trend throughout his career of being a fantastic shot-stopper and match-decider, then the Blues could finally claim to have replaced the sublime Courtois between the sticks at Stamford Bridge.