Chelsea dropping Kepa Arrizabalaga for final. Petr Cech, the legendary Chelsea goalkeeper and now the technical director has revealed why Tuchel made the “difficult choice” to bench Kepa Arrizabalaga for the Club World Cup final.
While Edouard Mendy was gone at the Africa Cup of Nations, where he helped Senegal win for the first time in their history, Kepa had taken over as the Blues’ starting goalkeeper.
During that time, the Spaniard has made an impression, starting all eight games Tuchel has played while Mendy has been playing for the Lions of Teranga in Cameroon.
He appeared to have resurrected his career, keeping five clean sheets during his time as Chelsea’s number one, although having little chance of unseating Mendy, who had firmly established himself in the starting lineup.
Kepa had been outstanding in Chelsea’s Club World Cup semi-final triumph over Al Hilal, save all three shots he faced.
His effort helped the Blues reach the final on Saturday, where they faced Brazilian side Palmeiras.
Kepa had done so well in Mendy’s absence that he looked to be in line to start in goal once more.
Because Mendy was only able to rejoin the Chelsea team two days before the final, that scenario seemed very plausible.
Tuchel, unfortunately for Kepa, chose to reinstate the Senegalese international to his starting lineup right away.
As a result, the Spaniard was forced to sit on the bench and watch as Mendy led the Blues to their first Club World Cup triumph.
Cech stated that dropping Kepa was a difficult decision, but added that Mendy’s standing as the first-choice goalkeeper left him with little choice.
Chelsea’s technical director told Channel 4: “We have outstanding goalkeepers, they both play at a high level this season.”
“It makes things difficult.” The same can be said for the other players, who make up a 25-man roster but can only play 11 of them.
“We selected Edou because he is our number one goalie, he came over here, trained, and is in good shape.” I believe it is a difficult decision to make, but he is our number one”.
Kepa appears increasingly set to leave Stamford Bridge in the summer, with little possibility of replacing Mendy.
Continue >>> Chelsea dropping Kepa Arrizabalaga for final
Mendy, on the other hand, made two stops to help Chelsea win the final, with Kai Havertz converting a penalty late in extra time to seal the victory.
Palmeiras had proven to be a more difficult opponent than expected, with Raphael Veiga bringing the Brazilians level after Romelu Lukaku had placed Tuchel’s side ahead.
The triumph was secured by Havertz’s penalty shot, which means the Blues have now won every trophy available under owner Roman Abramovich.
