Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has just clarified who Chelsea’s first-choice goalkeeper is for the Premier League moving forward.
Without a doubt, the goalkeeper position is currently one of the biggest problem areas in the Chelsea squad. The Blues have enjoyed watching some legendary shot-stoppers in-between the sticks throughout history, but it’s an ongoing issue at Stamford Bridge in recent times.
Enzo Maresca has used Robert Sanchez as his main starting keeper in the Premier League so far this campaign. Meanwhile, Filip Jorgensen has been the cup goalkeeper, starting only three league games.
However, fans will have noticed an interesting decision in February where Jorgensen started in the league and Sanchez started the FA Cup defeat to Brighton.
Chelsea’s hierarchy believe Jorgensen has ‘elite potential’, but has he done enough to snatch the starting position off of his teammate?
Enzo Maresca answers who Chelsea’s first-choice goalkeeper is for the Premier League
During Thursday morning’s pre-match press conference for Chelsea’s trip to Brighton in the Premier League, Maresca answered clearly on who now holds the position of the starting league goalkeeper.
The Italian head coach confirmed that Jorgensen is now the Premier League starter over Sanchez in net.
Maresca said via Chelsea’s official YouTube channel: “I said that the Filip solution was also to give Robert some time to recover mentally and physically. But the idea is not to game by game change the keeper. In the last Premier League game against West Ham that we won we had Filip. The FA Cup game was Robert. Our keeper in this moment is Filip.”
The scrutiny around Sanchez, 27, was only growing louder and louder because of several high-profile mistakes this season. Therefore, it feels fair that 22-year-old gloveman Jorgensen now gets his chance with a run of starts in the Premier League.
Gary Neville thought Jorgensen looked nervy in Chelsea’s league win over West Ham, but he’s given him the benefit of the doubt as he waits to see how he performs in the games ahead.
Filip Jorgensen vs Robert Sanchez
Finally, Maresca has made the call to upgrade Jorgensen to the role of the league goalkeeper over Sanchez. It’s a decision that many will argue should have happened months ago, too.
Here is a look at how the two Chelsea keepers compare so far this season…
| Player | Appearances | Clean sheets |
| Filip Jorgensen | 14 | 5 |
| Robert Sanchez | 22 | 4 |
For context, Jorgensen is yet to keep a clean sheet in any of his three Premier League matches so far. Let’s hope he can break that duck when the Blues travel to Brighton on Friday night for an important fixture.
Gianfranco Zola has backed Maresca’s decision to change his goalkeeper, so let’s see in the upcoming weeks if the decision is vindicated.
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