Arsenal, Petr Cech and Chelsea: For the right price, why not?

Petr Cech is being linked with a sensational return to Chelsea as the Blues look for a replacement for the outgoing Thibault Courtois. For the right price, why should Arsenal not consider selling?

The goalkeeping carousel is slowly beginning to whirr. Largely because of the World Cup, this has been a quiet transfer window up until this point, especially among the elite Premier League clubs. Arsenal, in fact, have been the busiest, signing five different players. But with the World Cup ending at the weekend, transfer momentum is beginning to build.

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At the goalkeeping position, that momentum is set to see quite a rotation of players.

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Thibault Courtois is on his way to Real Madrid — it is a move that he has wanted for some time. His family and children still live in Madrid and, with a year left on his contract, he holds all the power; Chelsea need to sign a replacement and have earmarked Allison of Roma as a possible target; Liverpool have reportedly made an offer for Allison and are the favourites to sign him; and Joe Hart sits on his todd at Manchester City desperately waiting for someone, anyone, to want him. And Arsenal have already made their big move, signing Bernd Leno for approximately £20 million a month ago exactly on Thursday.

The arrival of Leno means that the Gunners will look to offload one of the current shot-stoppers already at the club. With the continued development of Matt Macey, the return of Emiliano Martinez from a year-long loan at Getafe, Unai Emery now has four goalkeepers to choose between, and that is before Leno is welcomed into the fold. At least one, if not two, will leave, either on a permanent or temporary basis.

I had expected that David Ospina would be the man to miss out. Petr Cech seemed happy to stay and fight for his place, he offers much greater experience as the reserve goalkeeper to aid Leno’s adaptation to the Premier League, and Ospina has many unavoidable and critical flaws. But reports in the media are now claiming that Cech is being offered to Chelsea, his former club, as they search for a Courtois replacement amid fears that they are set to miss out on Allison.

I have spoken of my preference to sell Ospina, not Cech. He is the worse goalkeeper, provides less experience and knowledge in the dressing room, and is far from a reliable, dependable and consistent reserve option. But for the right price, why should Arsenal not consider selling Cech, even to a direct rival in Chelsea?

It’s not like he is the truly world-class goalkeeper that he was during his first stint at Stamford Bridge. He will not start at the Emirates and is an expendable resource. If Ivan Gazidis can eek out close to £10 million in the negotiations, then I feel that this would be a smart sale to make. £10 million for a reserve player who is making an increasing number of mistakes and is no longer needed is good going.

Next: Arsenal: 3 most likely sale candidates this summer

Obviously, selling Cech for anything less than his value, especially to a rival like Chelsea, is bad business. The success of any deal solely depends on the fee achieved. But for the right price, why not? The question, then, I guess, is what is the right price.