Chelsea have agreed to pay a world record £71.6 million to replace Thibaut Courtois with Athletic Bilbao's goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.

With Courtois trying to force a move to Real Madrid by going AWOL, Chelsea have taken drastic action by paying Kepa’s Athletic Bilbao buy-out clause ahead of Thursday’s Premier League transfer deadline.

The deal, which has been greeted by widespread astonishment, will also shatter Chelsea’s record that had stood at £57m for striker Alvaro Morata, who joined from Real last summer.

The path of Courtois to Real is set to be further smoothed by the Liga club’s willingness to send midfielder Mateo Kovacic on a season-long loan to Chelsea.

Along with Kepa, Kovacic is expected in London to complete a pre-deadline switch to Chelsea in what constitutes a frantic end to the transfer window.

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