Questions have been asked of Sanchez since he joined Chelsea from Brighton back in 2023. Is he a title winning goalkeeper? Do Chelsea need to sign an upgrade? And why do they persist with him and his constant errors?
Chelsea came close to signing a new ‘keeper in the summer but were ultimately put off by AC Milan’s £25 million asking price for Mike Maignan. Sanchez seemingly took that personally and has been (almost) exactly what Enzo Maresca needs this season.
Sanchez has kept Chelsea in games at times, the 1-1 draw against Arsenal over the weekend was a great example of that. Here is why the 28-year-old deserves more credit than he’s getting.
Robert Sanchez has come a long way
It’s hard to blame Chelsea fans for their scepticism regarding Sanchez. There have been moments, short glimpses of a genuinely top goalkeeper, but they were too often overshadowed by high-profile errors.
Last season, he made five errors that led to a goal, the highest in the Premier League. The 4-2 win over Brighton may well have been worst performance in a Chelsea shirt, he was responsible for both of his former club’s goals. He may have just forgotten who he was playing for.
Six minutes in, Kaoru Mitoma whipped the ball in and Chelsea’s defenders were all over the place, but rather than exude an aura of calmness, when the ball went into the air from a deflection, Sanchez flapped and Georginio Rutter’s header ended up in the back of an empty net.
His mistake for the second goal was worse. As was so often the case last season, Chelsea were caught out while trying to play out from the back, and while Brighton pressed, Sanchez passed the ball directly to Carlos Baleba, who couldn’t miss.
Thankfully, Chelsea and Sanchez had Cole Palmer there to bail them out.
A vast improvement as Chelsea chase more silverware
It’s a cliché, but Sanchez has looked like a new signing for Chelsea this season. The big stat is of course errors leading to goals, and this season he has committed zero, while keeping six clean sheets, second only to Arsenal’s David Raya, and conceding ten goals in his 13 Premier League games.
Last season, one of his biggest weaknesses was coming off his line and claiming the ball. Like in the game against Brighton, he would flap and his teammates didn’t seem to have much faith in his ability to do any better.
So far this season, he’s hardly put a foot, or hand, wrong in that regard. Sanchez has completed 22 high claims, and his teammates now appear to trust him a lot more to deal with crosses and set pieces.
Of course, he hasn’t been perfect. A red card five minutes into the 2-1 defeat to Man United at Old Trafford is a pretty major blemish on a stellar record. Even then, he did the right thing in attempting to close Bryan Mbeumo down, it was the taking him down part that messed things up.
Chelsea have the youngest squad in the Premier League, and Sanchez is actually the joint oldest member, alongside uncle Tosin Adarabioyo. Maresca has needed him to step into a leadership role, and he’s done exactly that.
Sanchez played a key role in Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph and now they’re chasing more trophies. Arsenal are looking like Premier League champions elect, but there is other trophies Chelsea are looking to add to their collection.
Verdict
There is still a lot of football to be played, but Chelsea are looking good at the moment. Having an assured goalkeeper is often the difference between winning trophies and coming second. Sanchez is proving a lot of people wrong.