Chelsea left-back Ben Chilwell has revealed that Kepa Arrizabalaga is one of the players who stays back even after training is over to put in some extra work.
Arrizabalaga has been out of favor this season, losing his place to summer acquisition Edouard Mendy. However, the former Athletic Bilbao man is slowly beginning to earn the trust of his manager Thomas Tuchel, following two solid outings in the FA Cup and the Premier League.
Arrizabalaga was brought to Stamford Bridge in 2018 for a world-record transfer fee for a goalkeeper from Bilbao. After enjoying a debut season, Kepa had a disastrous 2019/20 campaign under then-Blues manager Frank Lampard.
Chelsea are known to be a ruthless club when it comes to plucking both players and managers out for poor performances. Arrizabalaga found that out the hard way when his number one status was taken away at the start of the current season.
However, per teammate Ben Chilwell, the Spanish shot-stopper is putting in some extra work after training to show Thomas Tuchel that he's determined to earn back his place in the starting eleven.
Here's what Chilwell said when asked which players put in an extra shift post-training at Cobham:
“Whenever you see the boys after training out doing extras, Kepa is always in goal saving the shots.”
Kepa Arrizabalaga is trying to get his spot in the starting eleven back. He will be hoping that consecutive clean sheets against Manchester City and Brighton and Hove Albion go some way to warranting consideration for the starting role.
Also Read: Real Madrid suffer injury blow ahead of crucial Champions League clash against Chelsea
The race for the Champions League spots is getting heated up with each passing day, with as many as four teams vying for fourth spot in the table. The two Manchester clubs have sealed the top-two spots, leaving the remaining two open for Chelsea, West Ham, Leicester City, Liverpool and even Tottenham Hotspur.
Chelsea's intention to gain ground on their rivals took a huge hit yesterday when Thomas Tuchel's men could only manage a 0-0 draw against minnows Brighton and Hove Albion. The Pensioners were lucky to get away with a point as Danny Welbeck had a great opportunity to seal all three points for the visitors with a good chance in the second half.
Chelsea will now shift their focus to Saturday when they play city rivals West Ham at the London Stadium. Both teams will be looking to get all three points considering what's at stake. Chelsea will be hoping their stars turn up despite concentration issues due to the ongoing European Super League debacle.
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