Thibaut Courtois

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Will Cech even be fit for pre-season?

But let's just get this straight....Courtois's last two club games were winning La Liga at the Camp Nou and the Champions League Final, but you want to judge his ability to keep goal for us against Olimpija Ljubljana and Vitesse Arnhem.

That's like the owner of The Ivy taking a couple of chefs to McDonalds to see which one if best suited to running their kitchen.

There was a reason to bench Cech last season....in fact he was. His form last season was iffy at times and for the first time ever he looked dodgy at crosses. I have absolutely no idea what you think we're going to learn in half-a-dozen pre-season games that the coaches don't know from watching Cech and Courtois over the last 18-24 months.

Pre-season might actually be this 'mystical entity' with the stock you're placing in it. :eyebrows:

Yes. I want to see how good he is keeping goal for Chelsea, not Belgium or Atletico Madrid. A goalkeeper is only as good as the defence he has in front of him, and Atletico's is damned better than our's is.

[The only place to be 11,313]

Yes. I want to see how good he is keeping goal for Chelsea, not Belgium or Atletico Madrid. A goalkeeper is only as good as the defence he has in front of him, and Atletico's is damned better than our's is.

Really? Both defences are arguably the best in their leagues and you probably won't find a closer analogue for our defensive structure than Atletico's almost anywhere in Europe. Of course there will be changes, but I don't think you could ask for a better team for a goalkeeper to come from than Atletico's.

Having watched both keepers a lot, Courtois is better right now in my opinion. Cech has not looked like the Cech of 2012 for a while which is worrying.

Put it like this. I don't think we lose anything by putting Courtois in goal for us next season and I think there's a chance we actually become a better team with him. Pre-season is about fitness, not competition so I don't know how useful a yardstick that is. Pragmatically there's no reason not to go with Courtois, but emotionally there's always going to be a pull for keeping Cech and football is about emotion.

Either way we've got one of the top six (?) keepers in the world in goal for us.

[Reddish-Blue 2,382]

Yes. I want to see how good he is keeping goal for Chelsea, not Belgium or Atletico Madrid. A goalkeeper is only as good as the defence he has in front of him, and Atletico's is damned better than our's is.

Provided that we sign a quality LB, our defence won't be that far behind Atletico's!

E.g. Azpi - JT - GC - Luis is quite similar to:

Juanfran - Miranda - Godin - Luis

[Special Juan 27,512]

We won't concede a goal next season

[The Rising Sun 709]

So glad to hear this news!

While Cech has been amazing for all his years with us, i think his upward curve in performance had ended and there was too much uncertainty in his movement last 2 years.

He is still one of the best keepers around, but here we have a guy who will undoubtedly become/already is in contention for being the best keeper in the world.

And we can have him for the next 10 years.

Simply too good an opportunity to let go.

Goalkeepers of this caliber don't come around too often and considering we spotted him 3 years back and watched him progress into the best keeper in spain and Europe, its time we start reaping the rewards ourselves.

Its a tough call to make for the club, and the fans, but it is required.

One way or another, i dont believe in this theory of 2 WC keepers competing for first spot.

I remember watching the whole Tottenham nonsense unfold where they bought a WC keeper and told him that he will compete against the current keeper.

Such scenarios never end well, and the media scrutiny is not good for the team.

I have watched Courtois enough over the last few seasons and Cech every game.

I would prefer we get this kid back and have our first young investment come good.

It also brings back some credibility to us as a club, where nowadays people make jokes about Chelsea buying young talent and shipping them away, never to be seen around the club again.

[xPetrCechx 13,563]

Cech is better. Still.

[We Hate Scouse 10,286]

Cech is better. Still.

I have a feeling you'll soon be changing your username to xThibautCourtoisx

[bethos1 802]

Yes. I want to see how good he is keeping goal for Chelsea, not Belgium or Atletico Madrid. A goalkeeper is only as good as the defence he has in front of him, and Atletico's is damned better than our's is.

If you can perform for Atletico or Belgium I see no reason why he shouldn't be able to perform Chelsea like that.

[lionsden 4,689]

Yes. I want to see how good he is keeping goal for Chelsea, not Belgium or Atletico Madrid. A goalkeeper is only as good as the defence he has in front of him, and Atletico's is damned better than our's is.

This and absolutely this.

[Xtraxion 100]

The only way to know that is getting him here, seems pretty obvious?

[His Majesty 43]

Glad to see Chelsea has stopped postponing the inevitable.

[Pizy 18,516]

Our defense was just as good as Atleti's last season and will be better this coming season when we sign their two best defensive players.

[Viper22 2,418]

There is a risk whatever choice we make here. If we choose Courtois then he could be not as good as he has been for Belgium and Atletico, struggle with the physicality of the PL and all that. And if we've sold Cech we could be up the proverbial creek without any means of propulsion.

But also on the other hand, I get the distinct impression that Courtois won't be happy being loaned again or being 2nd choice, so will probably be sold. What happens then if Cech quickly goes downhill in the following season? He showed signs this season of being worse than his previous seasons at Chelsea after all. That would be one hell of an issue once we've sold Courtois and we'd have to buy another goalkeeper, either for mega bucks or one nowhere near the level that Cech and Courtois are now.

Either choice we make is going to have an element of risk about it, in football every transfer or choice does. The key thing is forgetting all of Courtois' twitter bullshit and trying to not be too sentimental after everything Petr has done for this club and to make an objective decision based on the facts available.

Cech Pros - Massive PL experience, still a great GK, knows the defence well, don't want to disrupt the team too much now we've sold Luiz, Lampard and Cole, could be captain after JT leaves.

Cech Cons - Showing early signs that he might be on the downwards slope, 31 years old and like someone else said not all GKs play well into their 30s.

Courtois Pros - Young (still room for development), already in the top 5 GKs in the world, played in similar system to us for Atletico and could play for us for the next 10-15 years, future captain?

Courtois Cons - Seemed to demand no. 1 shirt earlier in the season, unproven in the PL, still a few issues (like deflecting ball back into box) to iron out.

Even with those facts it's so close that it's pretty much down to personal preference. Personally I think Courtois edges it for 2 reasons: 1) I'm trying to think longer term and 2) I think Cech will stick around as a 2nd choice keeper which would solve every issue - if Courtois had problems then Cech could help him out.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Really? Both defences are arguably the best in their leagues and you probably won't find a closer analogue for our defensive structure than Atletico's almost anywhere in Europe. Of course there will be changes, but I don't think you could ask for a better team for a goalkeeper to come from than Atletico's.

Having watched both keepers a lot, Courtois is better right now in my opinion. Cech has not looked like the Cech of 2012 for a while which is worrying.

Put it like this. I don't think we lose anything by putting Courtois in goal for us next season and I think there's a chance we actually become a better team with him. Pre-season is about fitness, not competition so I don't know how useful a yardstick that is. Pragmatically there's no reason not to go with Courtois, but emotionally there's always going to be a pull for keeping Cech and football is about emotion.

Either way we've got one of the top six (?) keepers in the world in goal for us.

I totally agree with you. It went under the radar, but in May I wrote an article saying exactly that. There is next to nothing between them, and there is nothing to lose (except perhaps Cech himself moving elsewhere) by installing Courtois as number 1. There is no guarantee Courtois will continue to improve (players can reach their peak as early as 20-23 without really improving thereafter), but similarly there is no guarantee Cech will be able to maintain his level after his catalogue of injuries. Whoever we go with, we'll have a magnificent keeper. All I'm arguing is that people think Courtois is a step up on Cech - I don't think he necessarily is, but if he comes in and proves me wrong I'll be delighted.

[xPetrCechx 13,563]

I have a feeling you'll soon be changing your username to xThibautCourtoisx

Haha.... no way.

Cech is legend.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

Let Jose decided who is the best choice for next season. IJWT.

[Term-X 7,891]

It could be a massive risk discarding Courtois, only to then splash £20-25m in a few years on .. who exactly?, is it worth 'missing the boat' for an extra few seasons of Cech.

Courtois said this in 2011..

"Chelsea’s goalkeeping coach told me he doesn’t know how much time Cech can play at the top level,' the 19-year-old told Spanish radio station Onda Cero. I know he has problems in his knees and on his back"

[Stingray 9,441]

Courtois is having a Great game! Shows why he is worth of Chelsea.