Transfer gossip: Brighton face keeper battle as Chelsea weigh up move

After already plundering Albion’s resources in recent years by luring the likes of former boss Graham Potter, Robert Sanchez and Marc Curcurella to the capital, the Stamford Bridge side now reportedly turning their attentions to the Seagulls’ current No1 as they consider their goalkeeping options for next season.

That’s according to TBR’s Graeme Bailey, who claims the London Blues have the 22-year-old on a three-man shortlist that also includes Parma’s Zion Suzuki and Atalanta’s Marco Carnesecchi.

All three fit the bill in terms of Chelsea’s search requirements, with head of goalkeeping Ben Robert looking for a keeper that is comfortable playing out from the back - something that current stoppers Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen have struggled with consistently this term.

Both players featured in boss Enzo Maresca’s recent starting line-ups against Brighton as the south coast side beat them twice in the FA Cup and then the Premier League. Those games also allowed the visitors to take a close-up look at Vertbruggan, who has featured 27 times for boss Fabian Hurzeler this term.

The Netherlands international, who has also attracted interest from Bayern Munich this season, has three-and-a-half years left on his current Amex Stadiim contract, after arriving from Anderlecht for £16.3m in 2023. The stopper has made 54 appearances in total for the club, keeping 14 clean sheets in that time.

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