Petr Cech received a lot of criticism for his performance against Manchester City
Arsenal manager Unai Emery has confirmed that Petr Cech will start in goal against Chelsea this weekend, despite criticism aimed at the goalkeeper after Arsenal’s defeat to Manchester City.
Cech almost scored an own goal during the City game, when he passed the ball dangerously close to his own goal line.
He also failed to make an attempt to stop Raheem Sterling’s goal, prompting a lot of criticism from fans, who called for new signing Berndt Leno to start.
Emery has begun the process of trying to tweak Arsenal’s style of play to one which heavily involves the goalkeeper starting attacks and playing a high line. Cech has insisted that he is comfortable with the new tactics, despite looking shaky with the ball at his feet.
He attempted more passes against Man City than in any game he played in last season but conceded possession to Pep Guardiola’s team 11 times.
Arsenal signed Leno for £22m from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer but the German will have to bide his time while Cech keeps his place between the sticks.
The Gunners were given a tough start to the season when the fixture generator put them up against City and Chelsea in their first two league games. They could find themselves with 0 points after two matches after this weekend, but the team will still be confident of achieving great things this season.
New signing Mateo Guendouzi has even said he believes this Arsenal side have a shot win the league title due to the strength of their squad.
That may be the result of youthful naivety but there are certainly encouraging signs at Arsenal, who are going through a transition period after changing managers for the first time in 22 years.
