Does Chelsea really need a new goalkeeper to challenge?

Can Chelsea challenge for major titles with this set of goalkeepers?

Yes. Of course, they can. Ben Forster thinks Arrizabalaga cannot be the No.1 for CFC after the goal he conceded to Ellis Simms. That is harsh because while you can agree the Spaniard should have done better, to say Arrizabalaga cannot be the guy for Potter’s side is ignoring many things, especially considering Arrizabalaga has been Chelsea’s best performer this season.

Many times the conversation around goalkeepers is usually unbalanced as many things are attributed to the goalkeeper that he has very little control over, and Forster would know this. Keepers are often judged by the number of goals they can keep out, but that is very difficult to judge. A goalkeeper can save 80 per cent of the shots he faces every game for a whole season and not keep a single clean sheet, because clean sheets are a function of many different things, as are goals allowed.

People often evaluate goalkeepers ignoring the state of the defenders in front of him, and the defensive structure of the team. If a team allows many shots on target every game, their keeper is likely not to keep many clean sheets, not because he’s not good, but because he is limited in how much of a game he can single-handedly influence. He can save all the shots faced in one game, but he can’t save all the shots faced in all games. A keeper’s good form often coincides with the form of the defenders in front of him, and his poor form would also coincide with the form of the defense, or the nature of the defensive structure. Of course sometimes, bad form is down to the keeper and him alone.