Kepa Arrizabalaga will get his first start under new manager Thomas Tuchel as Chelsea travel to Barnsley for their FA Cup fifth round tie on Thursday.
The £71 million signing from Athletic Club fell from the pecking order during Frank Lampard’s one-year-and-a-half stint at the club, which saw him amass the lowest save percentage in the Premier League last season.
However, Tuchel wants his arrival to mark a turning point in the Spaniard’s career and has left the door open for him to become the first choice again; having lost the number one spot to Edouard Mendy.
“Absolutely, absolutely,” Tuchel replied when asked if he thinks Kepa can kickstart his Chelsea career. “He will play tomorrow; he will start tomorrow. From outside, we had a view on his situation and saw some difficulties on the sporting side.
“Maybe also the circumstances of his transfer is weighing a little bit on his shoulders. That was the impression from outside.
“From inside, I see a nice guy. I see a nice personality, an open character, a hard-working guy, with obviously a lot of quality. So the good thing for him is that we start fresh, it’s a new start for him. I don’t have a history with him and I hope there will be no difficulties because I don’t see them coming.
“He’s a clear guy, an open guy. He does everything to impress in training. I’m happy and I feel all three goalkeepers in a good atmosphere, they are competitors to each other, it’s a very special position in football of course, it’s a very decisive position, it has its own rules.
“If you make mistakes everybody sees them and talks about them. So you need a lot of mental strength and quality and I see this in all three goalkeepers. Kepa has a chance tomorrow and I hope he can show what he shows in training.
“We didn’t make a change in the first game and Edou [Mendy] was strong in the moment. So tomorrow is an opportunity to show and hopefully, it’s very important for me to say this, he doesn’t want to overachieve. I want him to do a normal match tomorrow.
“He does not have to show me or anybody else tomorrow that he is ready to be Spain’s No 1 in the summer. He just has to show his quality. Not more or less. So we have to manage expectations because I don’t expect him to score and keep a clean sheet.
“I just want him to help us with his quality and he gives a solid performance to help the team. He has big goals to achieve and personal ambition. This is normal; it’s why he’s here.”
Edouard Mendy has only conceded a goal – an own goal – under the German tactician in his first four games and would be hoping to continue in such blistering form when Chelsea host Newcastle on Monday.
