Chelsea’s goalkeeping stock has been stacked with the arrival of Filip Jorgensen from Villarreal. Who will be the first-choice goalkeeper, and who will be the fall guy?
Jorgensen, 22, was signed for €24.5 million and has signed a seven-year contract. Despite his young age, he was the Yellow Submarine’s first-choice goalkeeper, making 36 LaLiga appearances last season.
“This transfer is a dream come true. I am very excited to join Chelsea, one of the biggest clubs in the world. I can’t wait to get to know everyone and play alongside my new team-mates,” Jorgensen said, as quoted by The Athletic.
Jorgensen’s arrival adds to Chelsea’s already tight goalkeeping stock. There are seven other names still under contract, namely Robert Sanchez, Djordje Petrovic, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Marcus Bettinelli, Eddie Beach, Gabriel Slonina and Lucas Bergstrom.
Last season, Sanchez, Petrovic and Bettinelli were the three first-choice goalkeepers. The rest are out on loan, including Kepa, who won LaLiga and the Champions League with Real Madrid. This season, a similar scheme will likely be implemented again.
Petrovic and Sanchez, who took turns appearing last season, are predicted to stay with Jorgensen. Petrovic played 30 times last season, while Sanchez played 21 times. Even so, there is a chance that one of the two will leave in order to find playing minutes.
Jorgensen is believed to be the main choice, because he is the only goalkeeper present in the Enzo Maresca era. However, it is possible that he was bought to provide competition for Sanchez or Petrovic.
Kepa is predicted to leave permanently, especially since his contract has a year left. Bettinelli, if one of Petrovic and Sanchez leaves, will probably stay as the third goalkeeper. Beach, Slonina, and Bergstrom have a great chance of being sent back to school.
This squad buildup cannot be separated from Chelsea’s new hobby of buying young players and giving them long contracts. On the one hand, if the player performs well, he can be a mainstay or released at a good selling price.
However, on the other hand, poor performance will make the player a financial burden on the club. Normally, Maresca doesn’t need that many goalkeepers to navigate next season.
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