One of the most talked about football topics this summer was the battle between Petr Cech and Thibaut Courtois. Yesterday, Courtois was the first choice against Burnley.

Jose Mourinho kept it a secret until the very first match of the season; who would be his first choice? The answer seems to be Thibaut Courtois. The Belgian international returned from Atletico Madrid prior to this season and had proclaimed that he would only return if it were to become the first choice in the Chelsea goal. However, Chelsea already had one of the greatest goalkeepers in the Premier League; Petr Cech. Now, the Czech is on the bench, but is he better than Courtois? 

Great Dane Football Blog have made a quick comparison between the two goalkeepers last season, and here is what we found out:

	2013/2014 Season (Petr Cech in Chelsea) Thibaut Courtois in Atletico Madrid)
32	Age	22
£14.96	Value	£22
46	Appearances	56
35 (0,76 goals per match)	Goals conceded	40 (0,71 goals per match)
22	Clean Sheets	28
Premier League, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, FA-Cup	Tournaments	La Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League and Supercopa

Jose Mourinho has got a lot of critic for the way Chelsea have been playing in the Premier League and the Champions League this season. Now, Andre Schürrle defends his manager.

Last week Chelsea got a draw against Atletico Madrid and won against Liverpool, but after both matches the club have been criticised for the defensive play style. Now, Andre Schürrle have had enough: 

"We wanted to win but we knew we needed to play with a compact defence and that then we'd have a few little chances to score, which is exactly what happened. Winning is the most important thing.

"You can play perfect football, lots of one-touch stuff, and you lose. But that's not what you want - you want to win," the German said according to Soccerway.

Chelsea fans will unarguably agree with their German winger, but seen from the outside Chelsea are playing some rather boring football to watch. However, Barcelona have for years played offensive football where it has been more about passing the ball than hitting the target - that too is boring to watch over a longer period. Is football supposed to be about winning or entertaining? Winning is needed to keep the fans, but at the same time, the clubs have an obligation to perform some football worth watching, don't they?

What do you think?

Nicolas Anelka's West Bromwich Albion career ended Friday night when the French nomad was sacked for "gross misconduct." The striker was given a five-match ban and a £80,000 fine by the FA for the quenelle gesture he mad at Upton Park in December. Just hours before he was sacked, he Anelka announced that he was terminating his playing contract with the club, but it turned out he was sacked. His hunt for a new club might turn out to be a hard one as FIFA is considering a global ban for the 'quenelle.'

Sunday March 15 - Mourinho

Aston Villa won against Chelsea on Sunday, but it was Willian, Ramires and Mourinho who stole the picture. First, Willian was sent off after two yellow cards, then Ramires, rightful, was sent off before Mourinho was asked to leave the bench for arguing with the ref. William only had himself to blame after receiving a second yellow card for a cynical challenge to stop a Delph run. Ramires challenge was not much better, and finally Mourinho felt the referee was against him. Mourinho was yesterday charged for improper misconduct.

Sunday March 15 - Zlatan breaks PSG record

The Swede took his season tally to a club-record with 40 goals in the 2-0 win against St Etienne. Ibrahimovic surpassed Carlos Bianchi's record from the 1977-78 season where the Argentine scored 39 goals. Zlatan surely is one of the best strikers in the world, but credits have to be given to the team behind him and the league he is playing in. Many still believes that Zlatan could be playing in a much better league than the French. However, the Swede can now add another record to his long cv.

Monday March 16 - Lionel Messi breaks Barcelona record

He is only 26 but have already made his 25th hat-trick for Barcelona on Sunday. As it wasn't enough, the hattrick helped the Argentinian to become Barcelona's all-time leading scorer when he helped his side to a 7-0 win over Osasuna. Messi have now scored 371 goals and eclipsed the record set by Paulino Alcantara who scored 369 goals in 356 appearances between 1912-1927. This is the sixth consecutive season in which the Argentinian has scored 30 goals, and currently on 18 goals this season.

Tuesday March 17 - Ronaldo is set to break record

After Real Madrid's Champions League win against Schalke on Wednesday, where Ronaldo scored twice the Portuguese is only 2 goals away from breaking the Champions League goalscoring record. The record holder at the moment is Ronaldo's rival from Barcelona with 14 goals. However, with 13 goals on the account Ronaldo is more than likely to take the Champions League goalscoring record this season.

Rio Ferdinand and John Terry have played their last England match, and now it seems as Ashley Cole is joining the Ex-international. Can Luke Shaw get his first World Cup?

The veterans are ruled out one by one. First Rio Ferdinand was out; then Roy Hodgson announced that John Terry was a part of the past and with Ashley Coles lack of playing time in Chelsea, he looks to be the next to be sacked by England manager. 

The 33-year old defender have not started a Premier League match since 11 January and is being linked with a move away in the summer. César Azpilicueta is the favorite for José Mourinho, and he is not ready to give Cole a chance even though it can cost the defender his World Cup place:

Cole's 106 caps for England are being challenged by Everton's Leighton Baines who has been around the squad for a couple of years now. However, two other players are also pressuring Hodgson for a place in the World Cup squad; Arsenal's Kieran Gibbs and Southampton's Luke Shaw. 

While Gibbs is battling with Nacho Monreal for a place in the Arsenal starting line up, Luke Shaw has played 23 matches for Southampton this season, and is considered as one of the greatest England talents for years. The 18-year old are a future prospect for the England side, and will sooner of later earn his spot on the team. 

Leighton Baines are in front of the two younger defenders when it comes to starting for England against Denmark on the 5th of March as well as for the World Cup. However, either Shaw or Gibbs will probably replace the 33-year old Cole in the squad, with the first most likely to be called up. The new England is beginning to take shape.