Goalkeeper has been a position of need for Chelsea since Thibaut Courtois made his move to Real Madrid in 2018. One could argue that it has been an even bigger need than striker but Chelsea have spent millions of pounds trying to fill both positions but with little success. From world record fees for Kepa Arrizabalaga to £12.5 million on a young keeper in Djordje Petrovic that was playing his trade in MLS.
They spent heavily on Robert Sanchez, who has not panned out, and this summer they brought in Filip Jorgensen from Villarreal and Mike Penders from Genk for €25 million and €20 million, respectively. Jorgenson was recently named the number one at the club thanks to Sanchez’s errors and Penders was allowed to stay on loan at Genk to continue his development.
Penders spoke recently about the prospect of competing for a starting job at Stamford Bridge and shared that he is “impressed” by the top players but is ready to have a go.
"“At that level you know that you will have to compete with top players anyway. It is part of it. Of course I am impressed: after all, you end up among the best players in the world. But what is that, impressed? I look at it as something positive, like a wow feeling. For someone else it can mean that he feels overwhelmed, but I don’t know that. I don’t feel insecure quickly. ”"Mike Penders to Sports Witness
Penders has only started 7 matches for Genk this season and has 6 goals conceded along with 3 clean sheets in that span. Genk is leading the Belgian League so there is certainly pressure associated with the role but he has done well in his limited time.
What is most intriguing about Penders is his size at 6’7” as he can be a towering figure in the box, especially against physical attackers. Penders is the second keeper that Chelsea have purchased from Genk and the first in Thibaut Courtois won several trophies at the club en route to becoming one of, if not the best, keepers in world football.
Another thing in Penders favor is that the club does not have an established number one keeper in place and they have not been willing to spend big the way the previous regime did on Kepa years ago. He will have the opportunity to compete against several other young keepers that are more potential than fully realized talents at the moment. Perhaps Chelsea’s endless search for a world class keeper could end in the same place that it ended when they signed Courtois way back in 2011.