Chelsea boss Graham Potter is keen on continuing with Kepa despite the return of Mendy
According to the Mirror, Chelsea manager Graham Potter is keen on continuing with Kepa Arrizabalaga as his goalkeeper despite the return of first-choice stopper Edouard Mendy from injury.
Mendy was absent from the last three games due to a knee injury he suffered against West Ham United. Since then, there has been a change in manager at the club and his backup has done well in the games he missed.
Kepa, the £71.6m signing in 2018, who was displaced of his number one position by the Senegalese international, has done well since getting a chance. Manager Potter was impressed by the Spaniard’s performance against Crystal Palace and wants to give him more chances to claim that number one spot back.
Here’s what the former Swansea City boss said (h/t Mirror):
“If you look at what we’ve got over the next six weeks, it’s an incredible schedule. So I am in no rush to label anybody one or two. Firstly, I want to help Kepa enjoy his football and player at a really good level, which I think he did against Crystal Palace.
“Then I want to help Eddie get fit and ready to play, which he has done really well so far. Then we have two goalkeepers and in an ideal world, you let football decide. We have two goalkeepers we really believe in and that is a good situation for us.”
It is evident from the quote above that Mendy is not an automatic first-choice keeper at the club anymore. Seems like Potter will be patient and offer chances to both keepers to stake their claim for that number one spot.
This can be labelled as good management from the Englishman, who wants to give his squad players a chance to step up under their new boss and judge them by his own eyes, not the ones of his predecessors.
Chelsea face Serie A champions AC Milan next in the Champions League at Stamford Bridge. With their current position in the table (bottom) after two games, this will be a must-win game for them. Moreover, it would also be a chance for Potter’s men to gain some momentum after a stuttering start to their European campaign.
More Chelsea News:
- Chelsea loanee Callum Hudson-Odoi talks about his possible January recall from Bayer Leverkusen
- Joe Cole impressed by the new Chelsea owners and backs them to succeed at the club
- Chelsea are keeping tabs on Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli
Even with Mendy back, Kepa is expected to don the gloves for this game. A good performance here and the Spaniard could keep his place in the team for games to come.
