Petr Čech has found first-team football hard to come by since Thibaut Courtois rejoined Chelsea in the summer, and has spent most of his time so far warming the bench. Given that he's still a very good goalkeeper, it's not surprising that a few very good teams are snooping around in a bid to sign him at a cut-price fee. One such outfit is last season's Serie A runners-up AS Roma, whom it is claimed Čech could join in January for a bargain €9 million. Will it happen?
AS Roma reportedly pursuing Chelsea goalkeeper
Could Petr Čech head to Italy to get some first-team football?
Paul Gilham/Getty Images
Why it makes sense
Petr Čech may not be quite as good as he once was, but that doesn't mean he's still an excellent goalkeeper. Roma's current No. 1, on the other hand, Morgan De Sanctis, isn't anywhere near as good. What's more, De Sanctis is now 37 years old, and is likely to be retiring pretty soon. At only 32, Čech could feasibly have over five years left at a very good level, and for just €9 million, he'd be a great signing for the giallorossi.
What’s more, this deal is a pretty good one for all parties involved. Čech would presumably delighted to have the chance to play regular football at a very good team for a few more seasons, and Chelsea would make back the money they spent on him way back in 2004 when they signed him from Rennes. £7 million sure isn’t a massive figure, but it’s surely better than paying him a handy wage to just sit on the sidelines.
Why it doesn’t make sense
For the time being, Chelsea manager José Mourinho has claimed that there have been no bids lodged for Čech. It’s also possible that the Blues would want a little more than the quoted figure for their legendary shot-stopper, but given his age and gradual decline, that would probably be a tad optimistic. But, overall, there really aren’t many reasons why this rumour doesn’t make sense.
Likelihood it happens
This would work out pretty well for everyone involved. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to happen, but this rumour seems to have legs. 6 out of 10 chance.
