Chelsea legend Gus Poyet believes Robert Sanchez deserves to be given the benefit of the doubt by supporters despite the Blues no.1’s erratic form this season.
The Spanish international’s position in the starting eleven has often been questioned, with some urging head coach Enzo Maresca to replace him with understudy Filip Jorgensen or a new signing. However, speaking to sports betting site BetVictor, Poyet said Sanchez has shown enough to convince him that he is good enough for Chelsea:
“Personally, I like Robert Sanchez. With goalkeepers, it all depends on what you are looking for. Petr Cech and Thibaut Courtois were brilliant shot-stoppers for Chelsea, but it is difficult to find goalkeepers of such a high level. When you’ve had the best goalkeeper in the world the ones that come next are never going to be on the same level, but you must give him time.”
“I never watch Chelsea and get the feeling that he is a problem. I like to define goalkeepers by the moments when they save the team, rather than cost the team. Against Aston Villa he made a great save at 1-0 and Chelsea went on to win the game, that’s what you need from your goalkeeper. When things are going as well as they are right now at Chelsea people want to find a problem, they want to find what is missing.”
“In the end it is all down to what Enzo Maresca thinks of him. He will be looking for certain characteristics which suit how he wants to play. It is such a unique position that only the coaches can decide if he is good enough, but personally I like him and I don’t see any problem with him at all. He is playing for Chelsea because he is good enough, if he wasn’t good enough then the first person asking for a replacement would be the manager.”
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The numbers do back up Poyet’s view of Sanchez
The 27-year-old’s stats do compare favourably with other goalkeepers in the Premier League this season. Sanchez has the second-highest save ratio (81.%), which is even more impressive considering that the top-placed keeper, Liverpool’s Alisson Becker (88.2%), has played under half the fixtures.
In terms of comparing goals conceded to xG faced, Sanchez is also performing well above average (+1.4). That demonstrates that his performances are benefiting the team as a whole, despite some of the mistakes he makes.
Do Chelsea need to upgrade to become title winners?
As Poyet also points out, though, Sanchez is not of the same standard as either Cech or Courtois and you do feel that, if the Blues want to become genuine title contenders, they will have to buy a world-class number one.
Whether the club will invest heavily to bring in such a keeper in the future, we shall have to wait and see.
Find out who is in Chelsea’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here