According to reports, Asmir Begovic is on the verge of joining Premier League champions Chelsea in an £8m deal on Friday, in a swap deal with Marco van Ginkel moving to Stoke City on a season-long loan. Begovic made his intentions of leaving clear, as he wanted to join the Blues this summer and Jose Mourinho’s side had identified the Bosnian as the man to replace Petr Cech.
After initial bids from the west London side were rejected, Stoke finally accepted the increased offer and the delay was due to Van Ginkel’s move on loan to the Britannia Stadium as part of the deal. The 22 year old Dutch midfielder was also previously linked with clubs like Sunderland, Newcastle and Southampton, but will now join the Potters.
28-year-old Begovic refused to have talks with Stoke City on extending his contract, which was a bit displeasing for them, however, the £8m fee that Stoke received and the acquisition of the Dutch international must have changed the mood. Further, Begovic’s departure means the arrival of Shay Given, who underwent a medical at Stoke on Thursday.