For some the signing of a 33 year old goalkeeper who lost his place at Chelsea is a sign that Petr Cech’s best days are behind him.
Not so Arsene Wenger who believes that the Czech international still has room for improvement as he enters his peak years as a keeper.
“Petr Cech was already at the top but I believe that you can never deny that you can improve,” said Wenger.
“He’s at the stage of his career, between 33 and 37, where a goalkeeper can be at his peak and he has the desire.
“As long as you have the right attitude you can always improve in life. I don’t think it’s down to different training methods, it’s just down to him to keep at the top physically and with his experience he will always improve.”
Parallels have been drawn with the capture of Jens Lehmann in 2003. The German was the same age as Cech is now and went on to become a cult hero at the club.
They’re obviously different personalities, but if he can have the same impact in his first season I think we’ll all be happy.
He most certainly can
He will probably outlast Wenger and will be a pivotal figure in the team
The team AW is building has the right attitude.
Contrast that when we had nasri,song, van persie , silvestre etc
Expecting footballers to be loyal throughout is a big ask now but if they apply themselves well , put the team in front of individual interest – that’s a good sign
Thank you AW!
I hope nobody ever outlasts Wenger 🙁
Nobody outlasts Wenger. Outlasting Wenger is a treasonable felony in the French constitution
So much confident with Cech as goalie
Cech that Arsene
Getting Cech was a big statement of intent from the club. Hoping we can get the best out of the team with the renewed confidence and cohesion.
I’m glad people are starting to see what a masterstroke this signing is. Many were talking about how we had ospina and scz, but they don’t understand the effect Cech’s presence has in the dressing room.
And people scoff at the idea of him improving, yet forget Van der Sar’s 07/08 season for United when he was 37 or so. He was arguably the best keeper in Europe that year, so it’s not totally out of the question.
They say that because they think him getting benched by Courtois makes him a shite keeper not knowing that Courtois is no slouch and chelsea didn’t want him leaving.
Regardless, this is def an inspired signing.
I hear you bro, had to put up with a lot of shit from lunatics who objected the transfer of a goalkeeper of petr cech’s callibre in favour for the promotion and development of scehzney. Some of these uberfans would even question your knowledge and support/loyalty to the club manager players etc. Well…. hehe.. i guess wenger chose logic lrather than the wishful pipedream thinking of wojo being oliver kahn 2015 edition of the ‘informed’ gurus of arsenal blogworlds. You can get petr cech for 11 million aged 32-33…. wenger must have thought it was xmas… causing mou to fret… Read more »
It really was a no brainer…when a goal keeper like cech is available, you grab that opportunity with both hands.
I must admit, I was in favour of keeping Szczesny and letting him develop alongside Ospina, and doubtful whether taking Petr Cech was the thing to do. But I’m no lunatic, nor (I think) an uberfan, whatever that is. I agree there’s no doubt Cech is (still) a great goalkeeper. I remember the Arsenal signing Pat Jennings from our lowly neighbours, who seemed to think he was over the hill, and he made a great career in his 30’s as one of the Gunners’ best goalkeepers ever. So there’s certainly a precedent for Cech to follow, and I trust Le… Read more »
Can’t quite tow the party line here, though I hope I am proven wrong. I simply do not believe Chelsea FC would have let him leave if they felt he would provide anything like true competition for Courtois. They obviously do not. If Cech himself felt he had five good years at top flight level, why did he not stay and compete for his first team place? Cech himself doesn’t believe he can compete either is the logical answer. With optimism, I think Petr Cech will be great for a season. I think he is a model pro, has integrity… Read more »
….or perhaps Chelsea were keen to get another home-grown player (Asimir Begovic) into the team and decided losing Cech off their bench was the easiest route to avoid losing their on-field quality?
Hope Chelski get a penalty in the community shield….and Cech saves it…oh the joy!!!
I’d prefer us to get a penalty and Cech to score it!
Sorry to be a little off topic, but what is happening to Campbell? There have been little rumors about a sale. Has he featured in pre-season? Also, have Gnabry and Zelalem featured at all? Are there potential loan destinations mooted? Thanks.
Gnabry and Zelalem were both at the U20 world cup (I think), so they’re probably on vacation, or just about returning to training, just like Alexis and Ospina. Chambers was there as well (and Jenkinson too), but he didn’t really play and chose to join up with our squad earlier than scheduled. Campbell was at the gold cup, which I think finished even later.
World Class goalie we have and 200 mills in the bank, we so rich, we should celebrate – Goalieee!!
Cech, Debuchy, Mert, Kos and Monreal is as good a back 5 as you would see any where in England.
I would say that depends on what happen to Chelsea’s back 5 this year, especially their CB pairing. They might go the way of Ferdinand and Vidic at united a few years back, where suddenly both are exposed by age and both have to be replaced by youngsters who aren’t ready. On the other hand, they might also get another great year out of Terry, bed in Zouma who looked very good last year, and continue being the benchmark.
Cahill is only 29 so i can’t see it happening to him, however, that said Vidic is currently 33 so what happened to him and Ferdinand is relevant I guess. It will be interesting to see how long Terry will be able to be competitive in the PL. I hope not much longer and their defence finally snaps into little pieces.
Exactly. Personally I think they edge us slighty at the full back positions (Azpi is a beast tbh) and MAYBE CB(kos is better than Cahill, but Terry and Mert don’t rely on speed, but terry is a bit more mobile). So chelsea FOR NOW edges us in defence…not by much.
I agree, although in the last couple of years Ivanovic has been more useful for his tendancy to score very important goals than defending, been a bit patchy at the back, so the door’s open for Bellerin to make his case. Still, I just can’t see a Wenger team ever being superior to a Mourinho team defensively, and I have no problem with that. Let’s just outscore them!
Exactly. This is why I say we need a world class striker. Imagine having Benz/Cavani + Giroud + Welbeck. It would certainly match Costa-Falcao-Remy or even surpass it.
Fact of the matter is we’re only 2 players away from being title favorite. And to be honest, I never thought we’d be this close to a mourinho team defensively.
I’ve looked into my crystal ball, and I see Arsenal versus Chelsea in the Champions League semifinal second leg, at Stamford Bridge. It goes to penalties, and Cech saves every one of Chelsea’s shots, including from Terry on the final spot kick to win it. Then Diaby runs in from the crowd and kicks a crying Terry right in the chin. Arsenal beat whoever in the final, with Terry waking up from his Diaby-induced coma just in time for the final whistle and Arsenal celebrations.
There’s a confidence around us this season which has been missing for a long time. When you look at the starting 11s last weekend you can see we have 17 or 18 players who are good enough to be in the team for any game this season. The rest are close or showing promising signs they are developing well. Add Alexis who is genuinely world class and welbeck and the future looks very promising. We need to beat Chelsea, Sunday would be good, league game at their place even better, to take the confidence up another notch but I really… Read more »
His distribution is too gud. There was a moment in wolfsburg game when he picked Ozil’s run with a kick. Betting on him getting an assist this season!!
Here’s a prediction….or hope rather…. His career will be revitalised by a new place, a new challenge and hopefully regular game time….. Always loved the guy, he’s a one of our own, we should be behind him
I will never be able to support Cech given where he came from. Anyone who played for the Chavs with so much satisfaction can never be a true Arsenal player.
I will whole-heartedly support Cech for as long as he is at Arsenal, which (hopefully) is until he retires from football. I support anyone on our team, regardless of where they came from. If they came from Chel$ki or the Scum, so much the better – they’ve finally awoken and seen the light.
I’m guessing that you hated Sol Campbell for much the same reason?
Agreed though not sure I could ever support John Terry in the very unlikely scenario (Shudders) we sign him 🙁
You’re right, I never liked Sol. Once Spurs always Spurs.
Cech Mate!
*Gets coat…
This guy will be a great signing. Listened to all blogs arsecasts through last season, remember him saying he wasn’t sure if Cech would be much of an upgrade – makes sense to wait a few games before we can really tell – but I think he will be immense. It’s hard to remember how much difference a great keeper can make, we haven’t really had one since Seaman. I wonder if Cech’s replacement will be Emmy Martinez in 3-4 years. He’s the right age to be understudy and can learn from the best. He has the height and presence… Read more »
Someone please give Cech a Song