As one of the most experienced goalkeepers in the world, Petr Cech knows exactly what level he needs to be at playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world.
The 34-year-old won the Premier League’s Golden Glove award last term after keeping 16 clean sheets, and although he only has six to his name this time around, he believes there are reasons for this.
“So far it’s a kind of a different campaign because I think I have been doing well but if you take clean sheets, we had a run of games where we conceded at least one goal,” Cech said. “The most important thing is obviously that the team wins but it is good sometimes to have a clean sheet and that solid base at the back.
“We have conceded a number of penalties in games where the penalty was the only goal [we conceded], so sometimes you have these runs which are a bit unlucky against you but you would like to do something extra and find one extra save.
“Overall it is a season in which I am playing at the level I need to be at. You want to improve every game and keep the standard up the whole time - you don’t want to have a period where you are not doing so well or you are not where you should be, which hasn’t happened yet so hopefully I can keep like that.”
Cech retired from international duty with the Czech Republic at the end of Euro 2016, and he believes he is seeing the benefits of it now.
“You have time to do things that when you travel with the national team you can’t do,” he said. “It means you can do extra sessions, you can combine the things that during the season when you have a lot of games and might not have a chance to do.
“It’s a new situation for me but so far it has been very positive.”
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