CFC will delay goalkeeper decision until day of Cup final

Thibaut Courtois and Petr Cech only expect to learn who is to start for Chelsea in Sunday’s Capital One Cup final on the morning of the game itself as the Premier League leaders seek to secure the first silverware of José Mourinho’s second spell in charge.


Courtois has effectively established himself as first-choice at Stamford Bridge this season having spent the past three years on loan at Atlético Madrid, yet was rested for the recent league win against Everton in which Cech excelled. Duties have been shared in this competition with the more experienced man having begun the wins over Bolton, Shrewsbury and Derby only to make way for the Belgian in each leg of the semi-final against Liverpool.

That would suggest Courtois, who produced a series of eye-catching saves in the Champions League draw at Paris Saint-Germain last week, will be retained against Tottenham Hotspur, a team to whom he conceded five goals at White Hart Lane on new year’s day. Yet the club-mates will remain on edge until Mourinho gathers the squad for their pre-match meeting on Sunday morning. “We will only learn on the actual day of the game,” said the former Genk goalkeeper. “The manager makes his decision, like he does for all the players, and lets us know when he puts his XI on the board and everyone sees who is playing or not.

“Up to then, we are just preparing together, with Jamal Blackman [the third-choice] also, aiming to play that game, working hard to be our best. This season has gone well so far for me. I wanted to play: if you come back from loan, obviously you want to try and play as much as possible. Otherwise it’s better to keep being on loan. But I think Petr and I have both done well for the team, the times we’ve played. We have helped the team every time we could.

“I’m never nervous. If you play you have to do your best. But you have to be prepared to play whether you are starting or not. Even if you are on the bench, something can happen really fast in the game and you have to be ready to come on and play. It’s a final, and anything can happen.”

Courtois has excelled since returning from Spain to his parent club and is aiming to maintain a remarkable record of claiming major honours in each of his seasons as a senior player with Genk and Atlético. The 22-year-old’s own experience still contrasts markedly with that of Cech, who has won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups, a European Cup and a Europa League in his 11-year spell in south-west London.

Sunday’s showpiece has the potential to be tight and, where Cech’s excellence on penalties was key to securing that celebrated Champions League triumph against Bayern Munich in 2012, Courtois has yet to participate in a competitive shoot-out. “I don’t think I have, no,” said the Belgian. “There was just the one time, in a friendly tournament with Atlético. That was the only time I’ve been in a penalty shoot-out. But we work with the goalkeepers’ coach here, practise hard, and we will be prepared if it goes to penalties.

“We work on individual strikers and how they play. With all the videos and images you can watch nowadays, you try and analyse what they’re like, more and more. But football is still football, and every game is different. Every time they come in front of you, it can be different. I just work to do my best. This is the first final of the season, and everybody wants to win the first trophy that is up for grabs. That is our focus.”


Dominic Fifield, Guardian