Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy has insisted that he has a ‘very good’ relationship with Kepa Arrizabalaga, despite effectively usurping the Spaniard as number one.
With Frank Lampard losing faith in Kepa, still the most expensive goalkeeper in history, Chelsea spent £22m to sign Mendy following the late bloomer’s breakout season with Rennes.
The 28-year-old has already kept two clean sheets, including Chelsea’s first in a European game since October 2019 this week. After that performance against Sevilla, which saw him make a crucial save, Lampard declared Mendy his current number one.
But thankfully for Chelsea fans, Mendy being brought in ahead of Kepa doesn’t appear to have created any sort of negative or toxic atmosphere among the club’s goalkeepers.
“I have a very good relationship with Kepa,” Mendy said, via Chelsea’s official website.
“The group of goalkeepers we have, we are all very open, and all of us understand that the team is the most important thing here and doing what is right for the group. Our relationships are already very good,” he added.
“We work well together and are pushing each other every day to improve ourselves and to improve each other, and we know as goalkeepers that we have to stay unified and that is how things are going at the moment.”
Lampard is keen to keep all three of his goalkeepers on their toes and is looking to nurture the type of healthy competition that will ultimately improve them and make Chelsea better for it.
Despite declaring that Mendy currently holds the number one spot, that could change.
“When he came in, I said he will be great for competition, we knew his qualities and he has shown them, so at the moment he is first choice but that is always up for grabs and that is why you have competition,” the Chelsea boss explained.
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Source : 90min