The ‘Keeper Conundrum

We’ve been here before, haven’t we? A young goalkeeping prospect comes into our squad and takes the number 1 spot from a cemented fan favourite. Poor old Carlo Cudicini, arguably the best keeper in the league at the time, then had his place taken by some Czech bloke.

A decade later, things have gone full circle. That “Czech bloke” has become undoubtedly the best keeper in the club’s history, and a hero on many an occasion, most notably in Munich. But Thibaut Courtois had proven his worth over in the Colchonero half of Madrid, and deserved his chance in that first game against Burnley.

I was holding out on writing this article until I’d seen both Courtois and Cech play this season, and following Cech’s starts against Bolton and Maribor, and sub appearance against Arsenal, I feel I can write this without any possible arguments: Courtois currently is better than Cech. We need to consider too, that Courtois is 22, Cech is 10 years his senior. With Thibault having become very happy in Madrid, but still happy to return to his parent club this summer, the decision had to be made by Mourinho, and quickly. The decision that was made is, in my and the vast majority of both Chelsea fans and neutrals opinions, the correct one.

So what is this conundrum I mentioned in the title of this article? Well, it’s what to do with Petr Cech. How do we repay the loyalty of one of the best keepers in the world of the last decade? Do we do what we did to Carlo Cudicini and stick him on the bench for a few years? Do we play him in all the Cup games? Or do we sell him to cash in for the FFP money?

It is undeniable that Petr Cech would improve pretty much every Premier League team. Only Manchester United and Tottenham would plausibly reject the opportunity to sign him, with De Gea and Lloris possessing the respective Number 1 spots. This shows a player too good for Chelsea to be wasting on the bench. Consider the amount of money he could be sold for. Keylor Navas joined Real Madrid in the summer for €10 million; Claudio Bravo to Barcelona for €12 million. Petr Cech is a far better player than both of these players; indeed, I would argue that Cech is still in the top 5 goalkeepers in the world.

Who could Cech join? Perennial suitors according to the media are Paris Saint Germain and Real Madrid. With Real Madrid having just signed Keylor Navas and still having Iker Casillas, this would seem unlikely (albeit a form-plummeting Casillas is linked to Arsenal repeatedly). However, PSG would be a sensible choice for both. Cech knows Ligue 1, and the French language, from his time at Rennes; he knows David Luiz from his time at Chelsea; PSG’s best keeper, Salvatore Sirigu, is nowhere near Cech’s level nor will he ever reach it; and most importantly, PSG will have the money to purchase him. Mourinho and/or Emenalo could easily rinse PSG of €20 million for Cech’s services, which would be welcome to fund any further purchases that want to be made.

However, with Cech playing Tuesday’s game against Maribor, this transfer couldn’t plausibly take place until next summer, now being cuptied in the Champions League. Perhaps this is beneficial for both Cech and the club. It’s always difficult to sync to a new club, and for every Nemanja Matic who finds his feet straight away, there’s a Fernando Torres or Jiri Jarosik who doesn’t finds their feet, and it affects the rest of their career at the club. In addition, the extra six months for the club to find a new number 2 and 3 would be welcome, with Mark Schwarzer unlikely to extend his career any further. Cech would prefer a pre-season to acclimatise to his new team; and players like Matej Delac or, a player I personally like, Jamal Blackman, a pre-season for Mourinho to rate them as to whether they possess the sufficient quality to be backup to Courtois.

To sum up, I’m of the opinion that Petr Cech should be sold at the end of the season. Don’t get me wrong, I adore the guy, no Chelsea fan doesn’t after THAT penalty shootout. However, the club outweighs all, and what is the best for Chelsea must be the option that is taken, something we haven’t been afraid to do in recent years, the sale of Mata to Man United is outstanding evidence of this. Also, I believe we should repay Petr’s loyalty with the chance to win more trophies elsewhere as a Number 1, and remind everyone of just how good he is.