Chelsea’s Cezar Azpilicueta explains how Kepa has improved under Thomas Tuchel

Cezar Azpilicueta has recently been asked how Kepa Arrizabalaga has improved since Thomas Tuchel joined the club.

Kepa was signed by Chelsea in August of 2018 for a staggering £71m, making him the world’s most expensive goalkeeper.

However, Kepa’s hefty price-tag was a lot to live up to, and after struggling under Maurizio Sarri and then Frank Lampard, Chelsea opted to bring in Edouard Mendy, who has firmly cemented his spot as the Blues’ no.1.

Now though, with Mendy having spent a month away at the AFCON and Kepa also getting some other chances in cup matches, the Spaniard looks to be improving a fair bit.

And when asked how his fellow countryman has improved under Tuchel, Azpilicueta had this to say: “The first season he did very well. It’s not easy to become the world’s most expensive goalkeeper and he went through tough moments.

“Since Thomas arrived, he gave him confidence, gave him games, he started to be really important for the team.

“The attitude he has had has been amazing towards Edou (Mendy), Marcus (Bettinelli) and Hilario, the goalkeeping coach. We have a fantastic group of goalkeepers and we’ve seen how important they are for the team.

“Whoever plays, plays a huge part. We are very lucky to have two goalkeepers like Edou – a champion of Africa which is amazing for him and his country – and to have Kepa here as well.

“I see only the work Kepa has been doing in every training session even if he knew he wasn’t going to play. He has always been ready for the team and we have to enjoy what the situation is with our goalkeepers and have them with us.”

Will Kepa ever be Chelsea’s no.1 again?

Now though, despite his improving form, Mendy will be back for Chelsea very soon.

And as the African has proven to be one of the best keepers in Europe since his move to west London, it still remains hard to see Tuchel dropping Mendy that often.

Mendy, 29, is also only two years older than Kepa, so it is not like the Spaniard can simply wait about for his chance once Mendy retires or becomes too old.

Instead, if he really wishes to stake a claim as a top club’s no.1, perhaps a loan move would suit Kepa.

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Premier League table

#	Team	MP	D	P
1	Manchester City	23	41	57
2	Liverpool FC	22	39	48
3	Chelsea FC	24	30	47
4	Manchester United	22	6	38
5	West Ham United	23	10	37
6	Arsenal FC	21	8	36
7	Tottenham Hotspur	20	2	36
8	Wolverhampton Wanderers	21	3	34
9	Brighton & Hove Albion	22	0	30
10	Leicester City	20	-3	26
11	Aston Villa	21	-4	26
12	Southampton FC	22	-8	25
13	Crystal Palace	22	-3	24
14	Brentford FC	23	-12	23
15	Leeds United	21	-16	22
16	Everton FC	20	-11	19
17	Norwich City	22	-32	16
18	Watford FC	21	-17	15
19	Newcastle United	21	-22	15
20	Burnley FC	19	-11	13

Player	Team	Goals
Salah, Mohamed	Liverpool FC	16
Jota, Diogo	Liverpool FC	10
Vardy, Jamie	Leicester City	9
Antonio, Michail	West Ham United	8
Dennis, Emmanuel	Watford FC	8
Ronaldo, Cristiano	Manchester United	8
Son, Heung Min	Tottenham Hotspur	8
Smith-Rowe, Emile	Arsenal FC	8
Raphinha	Leeds United	8
Mane, Sadio	Liverpool FC	8
Mount, Mason	Chelsea FC	7
Fernandes, Bruno	Manchester United	7
Gallagher, Conor	Crystal Palace	7
Maupay, Neal	Brighton & Hove Albion	7
Sterling, Raheem	Manchester City	7
Silva, Bernardo	Manchester City	7
Bowen, Jarrod	West Ham United	6
Mahrez, Riyad	Manchester City	6
Saka, Bukayo	Arsenal FC	6
Maddison, James	Leicester City	6

Player	Team	Red Cards	Yellow Cards
Salisu, Mohammed	Southampton FC	0	7
Dennis, Emmanuel	Watford FC	0	6
Neves, Ruben	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0	7
Fernandes, Bruno	Manchester United	0	6
Rice, Declan	West Ham United	0	6
Westwood, Ashley	Burnley FC	0	6
Alonso, Marcos	Chelsea FC	0	6
Norgaard, Christian	Brentford FC	0	6
Tarkowski, James	Burnley FC	0	6
Laporte, Aymeric	Manchester City	1	5
Mings, Tyrone	Aston Villa	0	6
Llorente, Diego	Leeds United	0	6
Bissouma, Yves	Brighton & Hove Albion	0	6
Maguire, Harry	Manchester United	0	5
Ward, Joel	Crystal Palace	0	6
Skipp, Oliver	Tottenham Hotspur	0	6
Antonio, Michail	West Ham United	0	4
Gallagher, Conor	Crystal Palace	0	5
Robertson, Andy	Liverpool FC	1	4
James, Reece	Chelsea FC	1	4

Player	Team	Assists
Alexander-Arnold, Trent	Liverpool FC	10
Salah, Mohamed	Liverpool FC	9
Robertson, Andy	Liverpool FC	8
Bowen, Jarrod	West Ham United	7
Jesus, Gabriel	Manchester City	7
Pogba, Paul	Manchester United	7
Mount, Mason	Chelsea FC	6
Cancelo, Joao	Manchester City	6
Antonio, Michail	West Ham United	5
Dennis, Emmanuel	Watford FC	5
Fernandes, Bruno	Manchester United	5
James, Reece	Chelsea FC	5
Kovacic, Mateo	Chelsea FC	5
Redmond, Nathan	Southampton FC	5
Mahrez, Riyad	Manchester City	4
Saka, Bukayo	Arsenal FC	4
Benrahma, Said	West Ham United	4
Doucoure, Abdoulaye	Everton FC	4
Barnes, Harvey	Leicester City	4
Rice, Declan	West Ham United	4