Liam Rosenior Makes Shock Goalkeeper Decision for Newcastle Visit

The boss has been searching for consistency at the back.

Chelsea have not had a settled goalkeeper recently. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior has opted for Robert Sánchez as his starting goalkeeper for Saturday’s meeting with Newcastle United, leaving Filip Jörgensen out of the matchday squad entirely.

Sánchez was the regular starter when Rosenior inherited the team in January but, after a handful of errors, was benched for the past two games in favor of Jörgensen, who endured his own error-ridden nightmare against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.

Left debating who should be his starting goalkeeper, Rosenior has opted to recall Sánchez for Saturday’s visit from Newcastle.

Jörgensen has not even made the matchday squad, with reports claiming a groin issue is behind his absence. Taking the goalkeeper’s spot on the bench is young Teddy Sharman-Lowe.

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Chelsea Starting XI vs. Newcastle

Starting XI: Sánchez; Gusto, Fofana, Chalobah, Cucurella; James, Caicedo; Palmer, Fernández, Garnacho; João Pedro.

Subs: Sharman-Lowe, Tosin, Sarr, Badiashile, Hato, Santos, Lavia, Guiu, Delap.

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Rosenior: No Conversations About Starting Goalkeeper

Liam Rosenior is still deciding on his squad. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

Legendary Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel recently made the surprise claim that he had been told about a conversation between Rosenior and his goalkeepers, alleging that Jörgensen had been directly informed that he was now the starter.

Asked to verify those claims, Rosenior told his pre-match press conference: “I have not said to either keeper behind closed doors who is No. 1 and who is not. I have told them things they need to improve on and where they have done really well.

“I have never had a conversation with a keeper and said ‘you’re my No. 1.’”

The Chelsea manager added: “I think if you go through history and most great clubs, whether it’s a goalkeeper position, a No. 9 position, those shirts are earned on form, those shirts are earned on performance.

“[Look at] Petr Čech, here, as a goalkeeper. When Petr Čech came here he was a very young goalkeeper, same with [Thibaut] Courtois. They earned their time with the performances and earned their reputation with their performances they gave on the pitch.

“I want competition in every area of the pitch. The only difference with a goalkeeper, you’re one mistake away from this situation, whether Rob makes a mistake against Arsenal that ends up in the net or not, or Filip makes a mistake against PSG, it ends up in a goal or not.

“Because of the nature of the goalkeeper position, it’s spoken about more. I’m going to give every player in the squad an opportunity to show me what they can do to win now but also what they can do in terms of the long-term which is to win things consistently in the long-term. And both goalkeepers in different ways are showing me really, really good things.”

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