Chelsea are doing fairly well under Enzo Maersca, looking set to fight for a spot in the Champions League at minimum. One area of the team that has been under fire though, is goalkeeping, since Edouard Mendy’s heroics this position has been a troublesome one to fill with Mendy’s form falling, Kepa Arrizabalaga failing to impress, Djordje Petrovic being shipped out on loan, and now Robert Sanchez has come under the microscope. Despite this, there is a number of possible solutions to the problem with the club currently employing a host of goalkeepers, in this article we will be discussing each one, looking at who could be the answer.
Chelsea Goalkeeper Dilemma: Do They Have An Answer?
Robert Sanchez
According to a recent post by WhoScored, the former Brighton & Hove Albion man has made more errors leading to goals than any other shot-stopper in Europe’s top five leagues. In what might be the most hotly contested race for Champions League football in recent memory, this is a huge strain on the team’s defenders and attacking outlets to make up the difference.
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Beyond those errors, there’s the additional hurdle of the manager requiring his goalkeeper to make a lot of passes, to be a part of the build-up. While Sanchez does boast impressive short and medium-passing success rates, one at 99% and the other at 96, his long-range passing has been woeful, completing just 38% all season.
While it’s no exact comparison, the number one for the very successful Chelsea Women’s team Hannah Hampton has a long-range completion of 46%, a down year by her standards.
Both with the ball at his feet, and in keeping out goals, there are some clear questions to be asked of the 27-year-old. But is he the best that the team has to offer?
Filip Jorgensen
Joining from Villarreal in the summer, the Danish international is the most direct competitor for the number one spot. He’s only featured in the Carabao Cup and Europa Conference League so far and has failed to make his mark so far.
Keeping just two clean sheets (per FBRef) and concerning five times in as many outings, he doesn’t appear to be much of an upgrade on his colleague. His passing does appear to be better, but this is largely coming against lower-tier opposition, when playing Newcastle in the cup, he was found out at the back a number of times.
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While he may yet get a chance to feature in the Premier League, the youngster doesn’t look ready to take over the role for a top team.
Kepa Arrizabalaga
Despite being loaned out and forgotten, the former Bilbao man is still on the books of the London club, currently at Bournemouth, he has looked solid despite letting 10 goals past him. His passing stats are stronger than Sanchez, especially his long passing ability, which indicates that he might be a better fit for Maresca’s tactics than anyone else.
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Despite that, the ship has almost certainly sailed on his time at Chelsea, he’s been dropped and shipped out too many times to repair the relationship. His unimpressive loan spell at Real Madrid last term also casts doubts on his abilities as a top-tier goalkeeper.
Djordje Petrovic
After spending the latter end of Mauricio Pochettino’s reign as the starting option, the Serbian was sent out on loan to fellow BlueCo team Strasbourg. His statistics paint a very poor picture, ranking in the bottom 16 percentile for save percentage across Europe’s top five leagues.
Per FBref, he allows more goals than expected, indicating a less-than-ideal shot-stopping ability. This will likely hurt his chances of a return to the Blues squad despite his impressive passing numbers.
Mike Penders
The next big hope? Penders joined from Genk over the summer and was loaned back, he’s spent the campaign so far mainly at Jong Genk, the academy team, despite making two appearances for the senior team.
It’s tough to judge a teenager playing at such a low level, it comes down to trusting the scouts who have already unearthed gems like Nicolas Jackson, Estevao, Malo Gusto, and Renato Veiga.
There have been clips posted of the Belgian who does look comfortable on the ball, but it will remain to be seen whether that can be scaled up to faster, smarter opposition at higher levels.
The Chelsea goalkeeper dilemma is one that’s sure to rage on. Questions swirl about all of their primary options, while there’s some hope levied at the largely unproven Penders or Petrovic, it may be a situation where they’re forced into the market for a big name signing eventually.
