Chelsea actually rejected chance to sign £29m Liverpool player this summer

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Chelsea and Liverpool have taken vastly different approaches to recruitment this summer.

The Blues have spent over £200m to bring 11 new faces to Stamford Bridge – despite already signing 12 players last season – whereas Liverpool have only completed two deals this summer in the form of Giorgi Mamardashvili and Federico Chiesa.

Now – however – it has been revealed that Chelsea ignored the opportunity to sign a Liverpool player this summer…

Chelsea rejected Giorgi Mamardashvili before Liverpool deal

A story from the Daily Mail now states that Chelsea rejected the chance to sign Mamardashvili before Liverpool eventually struck a £29m agreement with Valencia.

Sami Mokbel explains that the Blues made the decision as a show of respect to Robert Sanchez – who is the current No.1 under Enzo Maresca.

Liverpool then did decide to get involved in the race to sign Mamardashvili – who Newcastle also looked at signing – striking a £29m agreement before loaning the Georgia international back to Valencia for the 2024/25 campaign.

The Reds intend to deploy the 23-year-old as Alisson Becker’s replacement whenever the Brazil international decides to leave Anfield, but did not want to miss out on the Georgian before that happens, or allow his value to soar far beyond £29m.

Makes no sense

Chelsea deciding against a move for Mamardashvili as a sign of respect towards Sanchez is baffling when you consider other business carried out by the Blues this summer.

Two of Chelsea’s 11 new signings this summer are goalkeepers, with the west Londoners spending £20.7m to sign Filip Jorgensen from Villarreal, while also splashing £17m on KRC Genk glovesman Mike Penders.

As a result, Chelsea now bizarrely have eight goalkeepers contracted at Stamford Bridge, in the form of Sanchez, Djordje Petrovic, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Marcus Bettinelli, Lucas Bergstrom, Eddie Beach, Jorgensen and Penders.

Therefore, the decision to reject Mamardashvili was seemingly not a show of respect to Sanchez, but instead, merely what any club who already own eight goalkeepers should do.