Premier League Rumors: Kepa Could Get Starting Job Back Against Manchester United

It appears that the Kepa Arrizabalag may not be a candidate of getting booted out of Chelsea after all. Despite previous speculations that the Spaniard's time with the Blues hands in the balance, it seems the recent benching was more of a wake-up call done by Chelsea manager Frank Lampard.

In a previous post, there was the growing belief that among the changes Lampard would be making is a change in the goalkeeper position. With Chelsea managing to only keep five clean sheets, the 41-year-old manager made a sudden change, calling on Willy Caballero to perform goalkeeping duties. The 38-year-old did respond well against Hull and it appeared the Blues would be sticking with him moving forward. Tied up to that was the future of Kepa. Is the 25-year-old's future with Chelsea in jeopardy?

But it appears that is not the case. In a report from The Sun, it seems that Lampard and Kepa used the current lull to discuss things. The changeup was nothing more than a wakeup call for the Spaniard who could eventually return as the team's starting goalkeeper. The Blues are expected to face Manchester United on Feb. 17 and there is a chance that Kepa would be back to his regular starting role.

But looking at his performance this season, there are risks involved. Kepa has not performed accordingly and Lampard made it clear that he wants the Blues to be at their competitive best. This is why he went with Caballero previously, wanting to see that competitive fire in Kepa.

Kepa needs to play with a sense of urgency with Chelsea sitting fourth in the Premier League table. They are battling with Sheffield United and Tottenham for the final Champions League spot, meaning the Blues cannot afford slip-ups.

Also worth considering is the fact that Lampard is now actively shopping for another goalkeeper. In another previous post, Chelsea was one of the teams in the hunt for rising young star Dean Henderson. The 22-year-old is a long-time target of the Blue top brass and it appears they are getting pretty close. In their way is Paris Saint-Germain, another team trying to pry away Henderson from United. Kepa has likely read about this, giving him even more reason to raise his level of play unless he would not mind being benched once again.