Kepa Arrizabalaga became the world’s most expensive goalkeeper on Wednesday after completing a £71.6m move from Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea, with the young Spain international signing a seven-year contract to replace Thibaut Courtois at Stamford Bridge.

Kepa will be joined by the Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic after he was secured on loan from Real Madrid. The fee for Kepa eclipses the previous record for a goalkeeper of £66.9m, paid by Liverpool to Roma for Brazil’s No 1, Alisson, last month and the Spaniard could make his debut in Saturday’s opening Premier League fixture at Huddersfield. Real, who will unveil Courtois on Thursday afternoon, had been close to securing the one-time Spain international for £17.9m seven months ago.

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“It’s a very important decision for me, for my career, and also for my personal life,” Kepa said. “So many things attracted me to the club, all the titles the club has won, the other players, the city, the English Premier League. It’s an accumulation of things, and I am very glad Chelsea has decided to trust me and to take me in as well.”

Lawyers for Chelsea and Kepa had convened at the offices of La Liga in Madrid on Wednesday morning and deposited the fee to trigger the release clause in the 23-year-old’s contract. The goalkeeper, capped once but a regular in Spain’s junior set-up, subsequently flew to London.

“Kepa is a talent we have admired for a long time and we are extremely excited about his arrival,” said the Chelsea director, Marina Granovskaia. “He has already demonstrated fantastic quality and consistency and will be a big part of any success Chelsea have in the coming years. His long-term contract reflects the belief we have in him and we look ahead to the coming seasons with an enormous sense of optimism.”

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Kovacic, who made 10 starts in La Liga last term, has joined for the season much to the dismay of the new Real head coach, Julen Lopetegui, as part of the deal that took Courtois to the Bernabéu. The Belgian goalkeeper, absent without leave all week, will be presented as a Madrid player, costing £35m, on Thursday after a medical.

Courtois, 26, who had entered the final 12 months of his contract having indicated since January he would be unlikely to agree new terms, has long desired to return to the Spanish capital where he spent three years on loan at Atlético. He will sign a six-year contract and posted a lengthy message to Chelsea’s support on his Facebook page, stressing: “I hope you understand that being closer to my kids was considerable in my decision [to leave].” His children live with his former partner.

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He could be one of numerous departures, with Tiemoué Bakayoko’s brother and agent having spent Wednesday in Italy speaking with the Milan directors Leonardo and Paolo Maldini. Bakayoko, a £40m signing from Monaco, is likely to leave on a 12-month loan that could include an option to buy. Premier League clubs had been quoted £15m to sign the France international for the season.

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That deal, together with Valencia’s offer to take Michy Batshuayi on loan, can be completed before the end of the month. More pressing are the futures of Danny Drinkwater and Kurt Zouma, who have attracted interest from Premier League sides. Everton have enquired about taking Zouma on loan for the season while Drinkwater is available for around £37m, but prospective suitors have been quoted a £10m loan fee, plus his wages. Tomas Kalas is expected to move to Middlesbrough.