221 Clean Sheets In 479 Games: Chelsea Set To Lose Their Legendary Goalkeeper
Atletico Madrid have identified Chelsea’s Petr Cech as a January transfer target as the Czech Republic international has grown disillusioned at Stamford Bridge. The 32-year old is now second fiddle to Belgian shot-stopper Thibaut Courtois after his impressive performances last season with Atletico Madrid.
Cech And Courtois
Atletico’s manager Diego Simeone could sign Cech as he wants experience among the ranks in the the goalkeeping position. Courtois’ departure has left a hole in the defence as the 22-year old was a key player in the Atleti defense last season.
Cech has been with Chelsea for the last 10 years and will go down as one of the best goalkeepers in the club’s history. He has kept 221 clean sheets in 479 appearances for the club after joining from Rennes for €13m. This season, he made his 1st appearance against Arsenal after Courtois had to be taken off due to a head injury.
He had recently revealed that he doesn’t want to sit on the bench, “There is no time for me to sit on the bench and not play. If the situation doesn’t improve I will have to find a solution.”
Goalkeepers tend to get better with age, so Cech could still have sometime left in his career since he is only 32 years of age. He is contracted until 2016, so Simeone will not have to fork a huge amount of money for him. If Cech does leave the club, then 42-year old Mark Schwarzer will be the backup for Chelsea.
Atletico Madrid lost a host of players in the summer after winning the league title. Along with Courtois, Diego Costa and Filipe Luis made the switch to Stamford Bridge from Vicente Calderón. They find themselves 5th in the League, 5 points behind league leaders Barcelona, after a slow start compared to last season. Simeone had little chance of retaining Courtois as Jose Mourinho felt that the Belgian had done enough in 2 seasons at Atletico to start in goal for Chelsea ahead of Cech.
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