When Thibaut Courtois departed Stamford Bridge in rather acrimonious circumstances at the beginning of the 2018/2019, Chelsea were left in a difficult situation.
As a result of poor planning and a genuine dearth of top class goalkeepers willing to sign for the club, the Blues hastily triggered Kepa Arrizabalaga's
Signing on a seven-year deal - quite a statement of confidence in the player's abilities - Kepa is certainly at Chelsea for the long haul, which makes his recent dip in form all the more concerning.
Last season, the 25-year-old performed adequately. The Spaniard kept 14 clean sheets, the joint-third best in the Premier League, and also finished the campaign with a 66.7 save percentage, good enough to earn him ninth spot in the league.
There was of course the unfortunate Carabao Cup final incident, when the Spaniard refused to be substituted for penalty specialist Willy Caballero. In the shootout that followed Kepa made just one save, allowing Sergio Aguero's spot kick to squirm under his body as the Citizens went on to lift the trophy.
This pretty significant black spot aside though, his inaugural Stamford Bridge season went fairly well. It may not have been perfect, but David de Gea's start to his Manchester United career was arguably less encouraging and look how he turned out.
However, this campaign Kepa has been massively underwhelming.
16% - Chelsea have conceded goals from 16% of shots faced this season in the Premier League; no side have conceded a higher proportion in the competition during single season since detailed shot data was collected for the first time in 2003-04. Blue. pic.twitter.com/qT7R21Ptyb
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 22, 2020
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Source : 90min