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
|
Based on last season Courtois is the best of the two goalkeepers; despite playing ten matches more than Cech he only conceded five goals more, and had a better clean sheet record.
Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole have both left Chelsea, and 32-year old Cech might be the next. This might be the right time for Chelsea to let a new and younger goalkeeper make his impact on the team, but Cech still has an awful lot of experience that might come in handy later in the season; especially if Courtois fails to perform against the better half of the Premier League.
One thing is for sure: Cech is in a part of his career where he can not afford to be placed among the substitutes. The Czech needs to play to keep his position on the Czech national team, and a transfer could be on the way, despite Mourinho wishing to keep his now former No. 1. Both Barcelona and Nuremberg has been mentioned as new clubs for the goalkeeper.
The battle of Stamford Bridge in ongoing and it will be interesting to see if Mourinho can keep Cech in the club. Some will say he has a luxury problem.
