Jose Mourinho is a man of great integrity. He is a smug individual, but he knows what he is talking about and is happy to admit defeat when needs be. He is respected by almost everybody in the footballing world, and rightly so. But to imagine him swallowing his pride and begging for a player to stay, which reports say he is ready to do for Thibaut Courtois, is hard to imagine. It would be the right thing to do, though.
Courtois, for me, is the best goalkeeper on the planet right now, and Chelsea need him between their sticks next season. Sure Petr Cech has had an illustrious career with the Blues, but Courtois is the next best thing and has impressed hugely over the past few seasons.
The 21-year-old has kept 20 clean sheets from his 35 La Liga games with Atletico Madrid this season, and another five in the Champions League.
Cech has played 34 games in the Premier League this season, keeping 16 clean sheets, but what happens when he gets a long term injury? Mark Schwarzer steps in. And although he has done a fine job as deputy, he is a 39-year-old who only has experience at mediocre clubs.
Having Courtois as number 1 and Cech as back up next year would be a substantial step up.