Journalist Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Chelsea look set to miss out on touted transfer target Jan Oblak amid a fresh contract update.
What's the latest on Jan Oblak and Chelsea?
The 30-year-old goalkeeper has been linked with a move to the Premier League in the press of late amid uncertainty over their own options between the sticks.
Indeed, Evening Standard journalist Nizaar Kinsella has recently reported that the Blues are "making contact" with a number of goalkeepers ahead of some possible summer transfers, claiming that managerial candidate Luis Enrique would want Chelsea to "consider" the Slovenian.
While speaking on his YouTube channel, however, Romano revealed that the Atletico Madrid man looks set to sign a new contract, which would likely put an end to any speculation about his future.
The journalist explained: "We had some stories, it's not the first time, we always see Man United and Chelsea linked to Jan Oblak – Atletico Madrid goalkeeper – because officially, he is out of contract in the summer, so a big opportunity.
"But I can tell you that from what I understand, Oblak will sign a new deal at Atletico Madrid until June 2027.
“There is a verbal agreement in place, just waiting for the documents to be signed, but Oblak already said yes verbally to Atletico Madrid.
"So let's see if some club will be able to break that, but at the moment, from what I understand, Oblak is prepared to stay at Atletico Madrid until June 2027."
Will Oblak's contact impact Chelsea's manager search?
It's no surprise that some big English clubs such as Chelsea and Manchester United were keeping tabs on the player – especially if his future was previously undecided, as Romano suggests.
Indeed, the reported £360k-per-week ace has long been viewed as one of Europe's finest goalkeepers, with teammate Koke telling the press last year following a 1-0 win over the Red Devils: "Jan is the best goalkeeper in the world and he's shown it again. It's a pleasure to have him and I hope he's with us for many years."
With this latest deal set to keep him in Spain until 2027, it seems as though Oblak won't be on the market this summer. Perhaps this news will make a manager such as Enrique think twice about joining the Blues.
If so, this latest contract news could be a blow for the club in more than one way, as it remains unclear who will be the No 1 at Chelsea next season and who will be the new head coach.
