With the excessive number of non-home-grown players in the team becoming a headache for the manager, he is bound to sell some of his favourite players, while some young players will have to wait for next season to make it into the EPL squad.
Some established players like Peter Cech, Jon Obi Mikel or Fernando Torres are going to be shown the exit door as they are too good to be playing in the reserves, yet with apparently no suitors available for Mikel and Torres, Mourinho is going to have to let go off Cech to accommodate everyone’s interests.
Sending away Cech will be a huge blow to Chelsea and till will most probably be the worst decision Mourinho ever made if Courtois fails to adapt to the tough league and bring with him the form he displayed at Atletico Madrid.
Mourinho had brought Cech to London in 2004 and has been the club’s No.1 Goalkeeper since ousting veteran keeper Carlo Cudicini.
With a spectacular career and being regarded as the best goalkeeper by many, it will be a tough task to find a replacement, but luckily for the club they already have the best possible replacement for the cult figure in Thibaut Courtois.
Just 22 years old, the Belgian international has already scaled great heights and won trophies. He has achieved far more than what Cech achieved at that age. So that is a comfort for the club. But still selling Cech and depending wholly on Courtois is going to be a big mistake. Mourinho knows that to be an established goalkeeper for a club like Chelsea is no simple job and is a bit hesitant to trust the new kid blindly on doing the job single handed.
Both the players are not to be happy in warming the bench either, when last season we saw the substitute goalkeeper Schwarzer coming on for Cech only in the worst case scenario.
If Cech decides to stay and fight for a place in the team, it is going to be interesting to see how he manages to juggle between the two. If it is like last season where only one keeper gets the minutes, then it is sure going to create problems in the team.
But with the amount of matches waiting Chelsea next season, it is not going to be an issue to give them equal opportunities. While the league games and Champions League minutes are the most preferred ones, it waits to be seen how Mourinho is going to divide the schedule between his two star goalkeepers.
The most feasible solution to the problem, to sway in Chelsea’s favour, is to keep Courtois and Cech in the Premier League and Champions league squads, and restrict the aging Schwarzer to domestic cup matches.
Peter Cech is having a decline in his ability now. But he is still better than anyone in the league. So to let him go will be a huge mistake. The best thing to do is to rotate both players and keep both of them happy. Cech wouldn’t mind a little less number of games considering his age.
As far as the rumours are concerned, they will never become fruitful. Cech is just too good to let go.
