Chelsea’s goalkeeper call could cost them if Petrović leaves

Chelsea’s goalkeeper situation has closely aligned with their progress as a club over the last decade. Shaky and chaotic with a few spikes to the top of the European ladder, those major titles came with two of the world’s best goalkeepers manning the net.

Thibaut Courtois won the Golden Glove en route to Chelsea’s title win in 16-17, and Edouard Mendy was honored with UEFA Best Goalkeeper of the Year after Chelsea’s surprise Champions League victory in 2022. Since then, Chelsea have struggled to find a consistent goalkeeper, shuffling through their big money signing Kepa Arrizabalaga, Robert Sanchez, and a rotation of backups that have made starts when the first choice has been dropped for poor performances.

Chelsea now have the chance to end their chaotic run of keepers with one of Europe’s best shot stoppers last season, and lucky for Chelsea he’s already at the club.

Đorđe Petrović was signed from MLS side New England Revolution in 2023, a move that largely went under the radar because of Chelsea’s many summer signings. But before that, Petrović was making a name for himself in America, winning Revolution Team MVP and Players’ Player of the Year as well as being an MLS All-Star in 2022. Much like in the year just passed, Petrović made an incredibly quick adjustment to his new club after a move from his home country Serbia, and his teammates took notice. 

“Djordje showed here he is the best goalkeeper in the league,” said Revolution captain Carles Gil. “I'm sure he will be also in the Premier League in the next years, so we are very proud of him. “I said last December when I had an interview in Spain: I think he can be one of the best 10 or 15 goalkeepers in the world, and now he has the opportunity to show the level.”

Petrović shot-stopping ability was the attribute that caught both his teammates and Chelsea’s eye, but it was his penalty saving that made him a fan favorite in New England. 

His ability in shootouts was what first introduced him to Chelsea fans four months after his move to England, a dramatic save against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup sent Chelsea through to the next round and made Petrović the hero. After Sanchez was dropped as Chelsea’s full-time keeper, Petrović became the main starter in the Premier League.

Through 22 appearances, the Serbian was shaky in his first year, a 65% save percentage was solid, but didn’t help him solidify himself as Chelsea’s goalkeeper for next season. Instead, Petrović was loaned out to their sister club Strasbourg for 2024-25, where after finally being assured of the first choice spot, he exploded to become one of Europe’s best as Carles Gil foretold.

This season, Petrović ranked fifth in all of Europe’s top 5 leagues for Goals Saved Above Average (GSAA), an advanced goalkeeper metric that compares the saves a keeper makes vs the expected goals value of the shots they face. As well as fourth in Europe for save percentage at 78.9 percent. Petrović always had the ability to prevent goals, but where he really improved this season was his passing.

Under Liam Rosenior, Petrović was much more involved in buildup play than at Chelsea, only 20.9 percent of his passes were ‘launched’ (traveling more than 40 yards in the air), this being in just the 13th percentile in Europe’s top 5 leagues. In addition, he completed the second most passes of any goalkeeper in Europe, with the ninth-shortest average distance. His passing in this game against PSG stands out as a particularly impressive ball-playing performance under pressure. 

These numbers are all clearly some of the best in Europe, if not the best when equally weighing passing and shot-stopping. But comparing it to what Chelsea had this season makes it even clearer, he should be the No. 1 choice next season. 

Đorđe Petrović, not Robert Sanchez, is the right answer for Chelsea

Robert Sanchez’s shot-stopping wasn’t the problem, with a plus-1.7 GSAA and an impressive 76.4 percent save percentage, albeit behind a much more stable Chelsea defense than what Petrović had to deal with. But where Sanchez costs Chelsea is his mental clarity as a goalkeeper. The Spaniard was tied for first in the Premier League with five errors leading to a goal conceded. The all-time league record for a goalkeeper is six.

In addition, Sanchez’s constant launching of the ball and poor passing led to boos around Stamford Bridge directed at the goalkeeper, as well as Chelsea’s inability to progress the ball forward. This was following a puzzling decision to challenge Erling Haaland far off his line, which allowed him to easily lob the keeper to give City the lead. 

While Sanchez is only a goalkeeper and not involved in passing high up the pitch, many coaches now believe that goalkeepers are the very start of teams' build up play, so in the modern era they do have a big role in how the team plays with possession. Sanchez’s consistent poor passing and decision-making would frequently put his teammates under pressure and break up their early phases of possession straight away. It’s why he was dropped at Brighton under Roberto De Zerbi as well. The Italian coach played an even more aggressive build-up style than Maresca’s Chelsea, and Sanchez preventing Brighton from playing the possession-centric style that De Zerbi wanted prompted him to make a change. 

“At this moment I think he (Steele) is closer to my idea, my style,” De Zerbi said in a press conference. “Robert is improving, but at this moment Jason deserves to play. When I speak of my style, I’m speaking about the foot.” 

Sanchez is clearly a good shot-stopper, he very well could perform at a smaller team. On the other hand, Petrović has all the characteristics, including passing, that a top goalkeeper playing in a possession-style team needs. And Chelsea may be making a huge mistake by not seeing it.

Petrović requested to be granted the No. 1 goalkeeper role prior to Chelsea’s Club World Cup campaign, and while some may say it’s premature, the contrast between what the two goalkeepers offer warrants it. Petrović was the clear No. 1 in his incredible seasons at Strasbourg and the Revolution, and was never given the clear role in his shaky half-season at Chelsea. Constant rotation and being forced to ‘earn your spot’ isn’t the same motivation tactic for goalkeepers that it is for outfield players. This is due to the amount of pressure and eyes there is on as a goalkeeper, playing in a role with no partners. Confidence and support are the main ingredients to improving a goalkeeper, not trying to light a competitive fire as one might do with a winger or midfielder. 

That being said, Chelsea should take a good look at what they have with the error-proneness of Sanchez and the all-around game of Petrović and grant the latter the first-choice spot. Letting one of Europe’s best performing goalkeepers last season walk out the door may cost them their long-awaited return to the top of the Premier League table.