Off the back of their Club World Cup success, Chelsea will feel quietly confident heading into the new Premier League season.
The Blues have once again spent big in the summer, bringing the likes of Jamie Gittens, Joao Pedro and Jorrel Hato to Stamford Bridge.
It also seems as though their business remains unfinished, with Chelsea stepping up their interest in Alejandro Garnacho and Xavi Simons.
However, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher believes Enzo Maresca’s side should be looking at other areas of the pitch first, naming the one area they must upgrade if they are to compete for the title again.
Jamie Carragher working as a pundit for Sky Sports during the Premier League game between West Ham and Aston Villa.
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Jamie Carragher says Chelsea need to replace Robert Sanchez to win the Premier League
Speaking on the Overlap’s Fan Debate, Carragher and Paul Scholes were discussing the importance of having a quality goalkeeper to win titles, before the former Liverpool defender made his eye-catching comments about Chelsea shot stopper Robert Sanchez.
He said: “Man United started winning leagues with [Peter] Schmeichel. As soon as City brought in Ederson, they started winning leagues.
Carragher continued: “Liverpool bring in Alisson and they start winning the league. Chelsea brought Petr Cech in and they start winning the league.
“There is something in the goalkeepers. That’s why no matter what Chelsea do or what they spend, they can’t win the league because they haven’t got a goalkeeper to win the league.”
To this end, tenuous links between Chelsea and Gianluigi Donnarumma have emerged. While the 26-year-old would provide the Blues with the quality and presence in goal that Carragher is referring to, it looks as though the London club will be sticking with Sanchez for now.
Enzo Maresca set to back Robert Sanchez despite previous errors
Robert Sanchez looks set to continue as Chelsea’s number one for the coming season despite being dropped last term for a number of errors.
Robert Sanchez in action for Chelsea vs Wolves
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Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca took Sanchez out of the firing line in January following a series of errors, while still defending him in the media. “How many times has he saved us?”, Maresca asked after a mistake against Wolves.
“No problem. Mistakes happen to him, to the strikers, central defenders, no problem. Robert is doing well.”
After returning to the starting line-up, Sanchez recovered and won the Golden Glove at the Club World Cup. And while he was guilty of a number of mistakes over the season, Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya in fact made more errors leading to shots on goal (six) than Sanchez (five), who was level with Aston Villa stopper Emiliano Martinez.