Danny Murphy says he’s ‘not on the bandwagon’ of criticising £25m Chelsea player

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TalkSPORT pundit Danny Murphy has suggested that one Chelsea player receives unfair criticism for his performances.

Chelsea are a giant club that always seem to be under the spotlight in the media, especially since the current owners arrived in 2022.

It’s fair to say that the Blues have underperformed in recent seasons. In particular, many critics focus on the huge spending from the club, although it should be put into perspective there’s been a lot of investment into young stars for the future.

Enzo Maresca definitely still has a very talented group of players at his disposal, though. ESPN reported that Maresca has a target of finishing in the top four with Chelsea.

• READ MORE: Darren Bent predicts whether Chelsea will finish in the top four this season

Danny Murphy sticks up for Robert Sanchez

Danny Murphy has just delivered an interesting defence of Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.

According to Murphy, the 26-year-old Blues star gets overly criticised in the media and by fans. He actually thinks that the £25m gloveman (BBC) is a solid performer in-between the sticks.

Murphy told talkSPORT: “I don’t mind him. I think he gets heavily criticised. He could have done better for the [Mateo] Kovacic goal on the first day of the season; that was fair. But overall, I think he’s alright, you know. I’m not on the bandwagon of him being that bad.”

Robert Sanchez impressing for Chelsea this season

Many people were surprised that Chelsea started the new season with Sanchez as their first-choice goalkeeper. However, the Spanish star has so far justified the decision from Enzo Maresca.

He ended up losing his starting position at Stamford Bridge during the second half of last season, but the change of management has given him a fresh start that he’s grabbing with both gloves.

Sanchez has actually been one of his side’s best performers in the opening weeks of the season. Here are FotMob’s highest player ratings for Chelsea in the Premier League so far in the 2024/25 campaign:

• Cole Palmer – 7.94
• Noni Madueke – 7.79
• Robert Sanchez – 7.31
• Moises Caicedo – 7.17
• Nicolas Jackson – 7.15

Once the Blues defence in front of him tightens up, we’re confident Sanchez can rack up the clean sheets after his first of the season last weekend in the win over Bournemouth.