Chelsea Blues’ Clues: How can Frank Lampard fix defense?

4. A new goalkeeper

It cannot be understated how underwhelming Kepa Arrizabalaga’s second season at Chelsea was. Concerns about certain aspects of his game quickly turned into weaknesses that oppositions targeted. Stagnation became regression.

There was, however, one small glimmer of hope. In response to being dropped for Willy Caballero in February, Arrizabalaga put in his best performance in blue against Liverpool in the FA Cup. He was solid the next game against Everton before the pandemic destroyed the momentum he had built.

There was a potential theme identified though, that the Spaniard responds positively to believable competition. It’s just that in 38-year-old Willy Caballero, Arrizabalaga does not have a consistent threat to his position.

Lampard has seemingly run with this hypothesis, as his transfer plan includes signing a keeper that competes with the Spaniard rather than one that replaces him.

In Nick Pope and Edouard Mendy, the club seems to be hinting at the arrival of a goalkeeper who is the antithesis of Arrizabalaga. Big, experienced and underrated, either one of those keepers would cover for the Spaniard’s every weakness. From collecting crosses to being more mobile between the sticks, they would provide a far more reliable presence for the back line than Arrizabalaga or Caballero.

In an ideal scenario, Arrizabalaga would improve drastically as David De Gea did at United, performing consistently to retain his place in the team. His fee would finally be justified and the club vindicated. In any other scenario, the new keeper will ensure that Arrizabalaga does not cost Chelsea again this season.