Chelsea FC, Please Keep Petr Cech at Stamford Bridge
It wouldn’t be the Silly Season without transfer rumors swirling around and Chelsea FC at the center of attention. The breakout season as the club’s first-choice keeper for Thibaut Courtois has made club legend, Petr Cech, a benchwarmer for the club he won every trophy imaginable. Cech may be 33 years-old, but is still very much an elite goalkeeper and is also under contract with Chelsea until 2016.
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If Arsene Wenger wants to pry Big Pete away from SW6, he’s going to have to sweeten the offer. If not, then it is a huge mistake to let the Czech international take the tube up north and ply his trade at the Emirates. I truly appreciate everything that Cech has done for the club, but it is in Chelsea’s control as to where Cech ends up, and Arsenal is potentially a solid goalkeeper away from truly challenging for the Premier League with the reigning champions.
It seems clear that Cech wants to play first team football at a top Champions League side for the remaining years of his career. Goalies can prolong their careers much longer than an outfield player without sacrificing quality. For example, Edwin van der Sar retired at 40 while remaining one of the top keepers in the league.
As much as Chelsea’s management and supporters respect Cech, they should not let him move to a club that is a direct competitor and rival. Doing so would be worse than when Frank Lampard signed for Manchester City after Chelsea failed to extend a competitive contract offer to the former England midfielder. In this case, it would be Cech requesting a move to an English rival where he would play meaningful matches in direct competition with Chelsea FC.
If it were up to me, Cech wouldn’t move to Arsenal or any other English club for less than 100 million pounds. That sum is ridiculous, but proves the point I want to make. It is unwise to let such a club legend play at a rival, as was learned this year with Super Frank. Cech has amassed 162 clean sheets over 333 appearances for the Blues in the Premiership, according to the Premier League official site.
Another idea for the Blues would be to retain him until his contract is up. Cech has described in the media he would like to ideally find another London club, as the hassle of moving his family would be too much at this point in their lives. My solution is to remain at Chelsea one more season. He will be able to compete for trophies at a club he is familiar with, and could play in club competitions and one-off starts in the Premier League. Blue will always be the colour for Big Pete.