Courtois next Blues No.1

Petr Cech may have only just recently signed a new contract with Chelsea, but the Blues’ keeper has already suggested a long-term replacement for himself. After signing from Racing Genk last summer, Thibaut Courtois has impressed many quarters and Cech is one of his top admirers.

The 20-year-old was one of Andre Vilas-Boas’ first signings when he took over at Stamford Bridge last summer although he was immediately farmed out on loan to Atletico Madrid to gain first team experience. It appears as though that stint in Spain has done him the world of good and after keeping more clean sheets than Real Madrid shot-stopper Iker Casillas, Cortois has understandably caught the attention of a lot of people.

Cech claims that there are very few goalkeepers better than the youngster, telling the Fulham Chronicle, “I think if you look around Europe and you look at the goalkeepers with top quality that you would expect for a Premier League team, then there are not many as talented as Thibaut is. Hopefully it will continue for him and it will be good for Chelsea as well because you need to look to the future and you need to know that one day we will need him.”

Unfortunately for Courtois, it is very unlikely that he will get a chance in Chelsea’s first team in the near future. It was only a couple of weeks ago that Cech signed a new four year contract with the club and at just 30-years-old, most would assume that Cech is in the prime of his career. It is now understood that Chelsea will allow Courtois to join Atletico Madrid for another season, in order to boost his first team opportunities and prepare him for when the club eventually do need him. Moreover, with the goalkeeper making his debut for Belgium last year, the Blues know they need to provide him with as much regular football as possible to keep him satisfied.