- 12 hours ago
Maresca LOSES patience with star man as Chelsea struggle to solve €80m problem
Suraj Radia
- 13 Feb 2025 16:00 CST
- 3 min read
Chelsea are continuing to pay the price for some massive transfer blunders in recent years after Enzo Maresca admitted one of their stars is set to be dropped indefinitely.
The Blues have spent more money than any other side in world football since the takeover of Todd Boehly’s BlueCo group in 2022, with an outlay of more than €1.2 billion.
More than €80 million has been spent on no fewer than five goalkeepers during that time yet there has yet to be a standout option to Maresca, who revealed he is now set to axe his preferred number one.
READ MORE: Chelsea’s 10 most expensive transfers of all time
Robert Sanchez joined Chelsea for €23m in 2023 and began the campaign as the club’s starting goalkeeper, having lost his spot to Djordje Petrovic mid-way through last season.
Current ETV
Robert Sánchez
GK
Chelsea
Robert Sánchez
GK
Chelsea
ETV Range
€22.2M - €27.2M
And the same situation has manifested for Sanchez after a string of errors in recent weeks, with Maresca confirming that Filip Jorgensen would be his number one option going forward after starting in last weekend’s win over West Ham.
"I said that the Filip solution (against West Ham) was also to give Robert some time to recover mentally and physically,” Maresca said. “But the idea is not to game-by-game change the keeper.”
Sanchez dropped after repeated Chelsea blunders
Only two goalkeepers have saved a higher percentage of shots this season than Sanchez (76.3%), however no player in the Premier League has also made more than his five errors leading to a goal.
With only two clean sheets in his last 18 appearances, Sanchez lost his place in the team after a poor display against Manchester City marred by another mistake.
Sanchez’s downfall allowed Jorgensen to stake his claim for a regular spot after signing from Villarreal in the summer for €20m and primarily featuring in cup competitions under Maresca.
STATS
Filip Jørgensen
GK
Chelsea
Filip Jørgensen
GK
Chelsea
The 22-year-old made just his third league start of the season against West Ham in Chelsea’s 2-1 win and Maresca has now confirmed he will continue to stand by Jorgensen for a sustained period of matches.
"The idea is not to game by game change the keeper. In this moment, the last Premier League game against West Ham that we won was Filip... the FA Cup game was Robert, but our keeper in this moment is Filip,” Maresca said.
"I spoke with Robert a few days before West Ham where I took the decision to play Filip. I never spoke again with Robert. Filip, exactly the same,' added the Italian manager.
"They know the situation. This is the situation now and then we will see.'
