Petr Cech the ultimate professional, says Chelsea captain John Terry
Cech is now No 2 to young keeper Thibaut Courtois
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Your support makes all the difference.John Terry says that Petr Cech has been the ultimate professional despite losing his No 1 goalkeeper status at Chelsea to Thibaut Courtois this season.
Cech, 32, was left out the side for Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Paris Saint-Germain in which Courtois was the outstanding player for Chelsea. Cech had made two crucial saves in the club’s previous game, the 1-0 victory over Everton. Terry said that his long-standing team-mate would never give up fighting for his place until the end of the season.
Terry said: “It’s unlucky for Big Pete because he made two unbelievable saves from [Romelu] Lukaku against Everton last week, but he has been unbelievably professional around the club this season. I’ve seen a lot of players in my time throw their toys out of the pram. He’s been different class for the team, and that’s been important. The manager stresses the importance of the team coming first. They’re both there for the whole squad. Both of them have been excellent.”
Terry said that Cech had not discussed his future at the club beyond the summer. “We’ve not even spoken and credit to Pete, he’s not disrupted the dressing room or sent shockwaves through the dressing room. He’s been really professional. He knows he’s been a top keeper and still is a keeper with a lot to give. He’s fighting for his place. He hasn’t just given up and said, ‘It’s yours Thibaut’. When he’s come in he’s had to be brilliant and given the manager food for thought.”
He added: “We’ve got the two best goalkeepers in the world, in my opinion, both fighting for one place. It’s difficult. You can’t keep them both happy. The manager manages to do it, I don’t know how. Obviously they both want to play all the time. But the two of them are at the top of their games. Rotating them is a tough job. I’d rather that was the manager’s decision.”
Mourinho had revealed after the PSG match that Eden Hazard, Willian, Oscar, Cesc Fabregas, and Branislav Ivanovic had not trained since the Everton game. Terry said that the match against Burnley this weekend was crucial in the title race.
He said: “We’ve been lucky until now with injuries and niggles but everyone got through the game OK and we’ve got a bit of time after the Burnley game, but first we’ve got a massive three points to get at the weekend.
“With us playing Spurs [in the Capital One Cup final] that weekend [1 March], there’s an opportunity for Man City to close the gap, so it’s really important that we pick up points against Burnley. They’ve shown away to Man City that they’re fighting. Where we are and they are in the table means nothing. We’ll certainly be up for it.”
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