Arsenal: Debate between Bernd Leno Petr Cech nonsense

There is much debate surrounding who Arsenal’s number one goalkeeper should be: Petr Cech or Bernd Leno. However, in this piece, I ask: is there really anything to discuss in this youth vs experience debate?

It’s cliché-o’clock in the race to be Arsenal’s number one goalkeeper. On one side, how old is too old? On the other, if your good enough your old enough.

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The debate is fuelled by the £19 million addition of Bernd Leno earlier in the summer transfer window. The German shot-stopper has been highly-touted for many seasons and has not been signed for such a substantial fee to simply sit on the bench.

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But Petr Cech will not be wanting to give up his place so easily. At 36, he is by no means ‘too old’ for a goalkeeper. He was often labelled as one of the best in the world during his time at Chelsea. Plenty of keepers with this pedigree have been able to perform at the top level whilst pushing 40.

His reputation and achievements are not up for debate here. What must be debated is the defensive performance of the entire team. And with a team that concedes 51 goals in 38 games, at least some of the focus must fall upon the keeper.

In Cech’s defence, most of the problems lie with the previous regime, its tactics, its philosophies and focus, the setup that was implemented and the personnel used. But the problem to be debated here is that a debate has been started as to who should stand between the sticks.

There are some, including David Seaman, who favour Cech, and there are others who side with his presumed successor, Leno. What cannot be questioned is that a) only one of them could possibly be the number one in three years’ time and, b) it’s close enough to close your eyes and pick one.

If you base your opinion purely on those two points, the preferred choice becomes completely obvious. Looking at it in this way allows you to take off the ‘here and now’ blinkers and slip on your progressive sunglasses.

Cech’s experience could give him the edge now. But as it faces off against the passage of time, will it continue to in one year – or even six months? Cech certainly doesn’t retain the position automatically and must prove that he can still hold it.

Leno has only missed five Bundesliga games in the last seven years, which equates to 233 games, 1.23 goals conceded per game, and one clean sheet for every three games.

Not a bad record when starting out at 19 years old in a team that has often favoured development over experience. It helped to earn Bayer Leverkusen six top-five positions in those seven years. And at 26, he is just about young enough to still be referred to as a ‘young player’. If he gets game time, there’s a very good chance that he will improve on the level that he currently sits at, a level that is at least comparable with Cech.

Next: Arsenal: 3 consequences from Bernd Leno signing

You can see the same debate throughout the squad. Bellerin vs Lichtsteiner, Mavropanos vs Sokratis, Iwobi vs Mkhitaryan, Maitland-Niles vs Xhaka. And here is another instance. Youth vs experience, and in this case, it’s youth that should win out.