Andre Onana in action during the UEFA Champions League match against Valencia (Getty Images)
According to a report by the Daily Mail, Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana is interested in a move to Premier League side Chelsea.
After spending five seasons with the Dutch giants since joining them in 2015, Onana is said to be craving for a change, with the Blues being one of his primary targets.
The 23-year-old Cameroonian also has Chelsea’s neighbours Tottenham in his sights. Meanwhile, Onana’s Ajax teammate and incoming Chelsea star Hakim Ziyech is hoping to persuade the goalkeeper to make a move towards Stamford Bridge.
Talented winger Ziyech had recently agreed to a join manager Frank Lampard’s Blues’ side in the coming summer by signing a £37million deal and he hopes his close friend Onana follows in his footsteps.
Kepa’s poor form midway into the season had seen him lose his spot to the side’s second choice keeper Willy Caballero. However, even the Argentine has failed to put up a decent display conceding seven goals in the four Premier League appearances he has made so far.
This led to Lampard handing over the goalkeeping duties once again to Spaniard Kepa, who is going through a bad patch.
Despite Chelsea still hanging onto fourth place after 29 games, the side has conceded as many as 39 goals. Of the 39, 32 have been conceded by Kepa, who has featured in 25 league matches for the Blues.
Also, he has managed only six clean sheets so far, which has put him at 12th spot among all keepers featuring the Premier League. Hence, it is no wonder Lampard will be on the hunt for a new keeper coming summer if he wishes to improve his team’s performance for the upcoming season.
Ajax, who are atop the Eredivisie table at the moment, have conceded just 31 goals from a total of 34 matches. They are the second-best team in terms of conceding goals and are behind PSV Eindhoven, who have let in just 29 goals so far.
This season alone, Onana with 8 clean sheets is third in the list of goalkeepers for the most number of clean sheets. He has played an overall 39 games for the Dutch leaders this season and has 15 clean sheets to his name.
Onana had his breakthrough last season as he emerged as the best goalkeeper in the league by managing 16 clean sheets from a total of 33 league games. His eye-catching displays in goal saw Ajax emerge as the Dutch champions and also bag the Dutch Cup.
If not for a set of good attackers up front, Chelsea would not be where they are at the moment, considering the form of their keepers. Kepa has not had the best of seasons this year and Caballero is already 38.
Having proved his mettle already in the Dutch league, Onana would thus be a good addition. Bringing in Onana would be an excellent future investment as he is just 23 now and could develop further under Lampard’s guidance.
