Kepa Arrizabalaga

Kepa Arrizabalaga Revuelta (born 3 October 1994), often referred to simply as Kepa, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Arsenal.

After progressing through Athletic Bilbao's youth academy including their farm and reserve teams, he played for Ponferradina and Real Valladolid on consecutive loans between 2015 and 2016, after which he became a first-team regular at Athletic. In 2018, he moved to Chelsea in a transfer worth €80 million (£72 million), a record fee for a goalkeeper. There, he won the UEFA Europa League, the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup. After inconsistent performances, he joined Real Madrid on loan in 2023, where he won La Liga and the Champions League. Following another loan stint, this time at fellow Premier League club Bournemouth, he moved to rival Arsenal on a permanent deal.

Arrizabalaga won the 2012 European Under-19 Championship with Spain's under-19 team. He made his senior debut in 2017, and was part of the national squad for the 2018 World Cup, although he did not make an appearance at the tournament.

Club career

Athletic Bilbao

Born in Ondarroa, Biscay, Basque Country, Arrizabalaga joined Athletic Bilbao's youth setup at Lezama in 2004, aged ten. He made his senior debut with farm team Basconia in January 2012, in Tercera División.

On 5 May 2012, Arrizabalaga was called up to the main squad for a La Liga match against Getafe, but remained unused in the 0–0 draw at the San Mamés Stadium. He was also called up to pre-season in July, and on 23 September was also a substitute in another home game of the same outcome, against Málaga.

Arrizabalaga was promoted to Athletic's reserve team in January 2013, to cover for injured Jon Ander Serantes. He made his debut for the B-side on 16 February 2013, keeping a clean sheet in a 1–0 win over Logroñés in the Segunda División B. On 3 March, he was one of two players sent off towards the end of a 3–1 home win over Amorebieta, as well as teammate Jon García; in April, he suffered a pubalgia, only returning to the field in September.

Arrizabalaga appeared regularly for the B's after his return, but broke the first metacarpal of his right hand in January 2014, being sidelined for a month. On 11 March, Getafe submitted a loan request to the Lions for him, as a replacement to injured Miguel Ángel Moyá, but it was rejected a day later.

On 5 January 2015, Arrizabalaga was loaned to Segunda División club Ponferradina until June. He made his professional debut six days laer, starting in a 1–1 home draw against Racing Santander.

On 20 July 2015, Arrizabalaga moved to Real Valladolid, also of the second tier, in a season-long loan deal. He played his first competitive game on 22 August, in a 0–1 loss at Córdoba, and missed only three matches as his team finished 16th.

After returning from loan, Arrizabalaga was included in the first team squad, initially as third-choice behind Gorka Iraizoz and Iago Herrerín. He made his debut in the top flight on 11 September 2016, starting in a 1–0 away win over Deportivo de La Coruña.

On 22 January 2018, amid heavy transfer speculation linking him to Real Madrid, Arrizabalaga renewed his contract – due to expire that June – until 2025.

Chelsea

2018–19: Debut season, UEFA Europa League victory

On 8 August 2018, Athletic Bilbao announced on their website that Arrizabalaga had paid his required release clause (€80 million / £71.6 million), making him the world's most expensive goalkeeper only weeks after the record was set by Alisson's transfer to Liverpool. Later that day, his move to Chelsea on a seven-year contract was confirmed, replacing Thibaut Courtois who had departed for Real Madrid. He made his Premier League debut three days later in a 3–0 away win against Huddersfield Town, going on to keep six clean sheets in the team's 12-match unbeaten run in the league, before a 3–1 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur.

On 24 January 2019, in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final, Arrizabalaga saved a penalty from Tottenham's Lucas Moura in a 4–2 penalty shoot-out win at Stamford Bridge, helping his team go through to the final.

On 24 February 2019, during the 2019 EFL Cup Final against Manchester City, with the match at 0–0 near the end of extra time, Maurizio Sarri called for Arrizabalaga to be substituted off for Willy Caballero for the upcoming penalty shootout. Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted, gesticulating and remaining on the field. During the shootout, he saved one penalty as Chelsea lost 4–3. After the game, both Arrizabalaga and Sarri said that the situation was a misunderstanding, with Sarri incorrectly believing that Arrizabalaga was too injured with cramp to continue. Later on, Arrizabalaga met with Sarri and apologised to him and to the rest of the club. He was fined a week's worth of pay as a result of his actions, with Sarri leaving the decision of any further discipline up to the club. Arrizabalaga was dropped from the starting lineup for Caballero in Chelsea's next match, a Premier League game against Tottenham. He returned to the lineup for the following match.

On 9 May 2019, Arrizabalaga saved two penalties in the shootout at the end of the second leg of the UEFA Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt to take Chelsea to the final, which they won 4–1 over Arsenal.

2019–21: Struggles, UEFA Champions League win

Under the management of Frank Lampard, Chelsea failed to win any trophies. Throughout the 2019–20 season, Arrizabalaga struggled to stay in form, eventually being benched in favour of Willy Caballero in late January 2020 in a cup match against Hull City. Arrizabalaga remained outside of the starting eleven during the next four league matches and a Champions League match. He regained his starting spot on 4 March during the FA Cup fifth round against Liverpool where he made a string of saves to deny the eventual Premier League champions; Chelsea went on to win the match 2–0. But he would find himself benched to end the season, missing out on the team's run to the final of the FA Cup. During the second half of the season, Arrizabalaga faced abuse from Chelsea fans which led to him turning off comments on social media.

Arrizabalaga appeared for Chelsea in the opening game of the 2020–21 Premier League season against Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea won 3–1. Arrizabalaga was judged to have made a significant error in the next match against Liverpool, after his pass went straight to Sadio Mané who collected the ball and scored; Chelsea went on to lose 2–0. Lampard publicly criticized Arrizabalaga, stating that his mistake had cost a goal.

On 24 September, Chelsea signed Édouard Mendy from Rennes, and Arrizabalaga was relegated to the bench. He did not feature again until 17 October against Southampton where his performance received further criticism in the media as the side drew 3–3. On 10 January 2021, Arrizabalaga marked his 100th appearance for the club in a 4–0 home win against Morecambe in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

Arrizabalaga's fortunes turned under the coaching of Thomas Tuchel. He kept five clean sheets in eight games, all of which came in successive games. He had a save percentage of 89.4% under the German manager, significantly higher than under the previous manager. He was named as part of the 25-man squad for the 2021 UEFA Champions League Final on 29 May, and was an unused substitute as Chelsea beat Manchester City 1–0 at the Estádio do Dragão, lifting his second European trophy.

2021–22: Super Cup win & EFL Cup final defeat

In the 2021 UEFA Super Cup against Villarreal, Arrizabalaga came on as a substitute in the 119th minute to replace first-choice goalkeeper Mendy. He saved two penalties, including the decisive attempt from Villarreal captain Raúl Albiol, in the shootout as Chelsea won their second Super Cup title. The Spaniard got a start against Tottenham Hotspur, keeping a clean sheet. Later in the season, Arrizabalaga started only a few matches including league cup tie against Aston Villa, which Chelsea would go on to win 4–3 on penalties after a 1–1 draw. Arrizabalaga made a decisive save against a spot kick from Marvelous Nakamba, leading him to become Chelsea's most successful goalkeeper at saving penalties during shootouts, passing Petr Čech.

During January 2022, following Mendy’s departure to the AFCON, Arrizabalaga was reinstated to the first team. The Spaniard took his team to the final of the EFL Cup, notably thanks to his quick thinking to trap Harry Kane offside. He then went on to have another excellent performance in the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup semi-final, as Chelsea went on to win the tournament. On 27 February, in the EFL Cup Final, Arrizabalaga came on in the 120th minute, ready for the penalty shootout. Despite this, he failed to save a single penalty and missed the only penalty of the shootout in an 11–10 defeat against Liverpool.