Chelsea CAN’T win the league with Robert Sanchez as stats prove Jamie Carragher was right about keeper

SORRY, Chelsea fans, but Jamie Carragher may well be right – Robert Sanchez is not a title-winning goalkeeper.

Sky Sports pundit Carragher provoked outrage among some Blues supporters by claiming Sanchez and the centre backs in front of him were not good enough to bring a first Premier League crown since 2017 to Stamford Bridge.

Sanchez was sent off at Old Trafford opening up the conversations about his ability and if Chelsea need a new man in postCredit: Getty

Liverpool struck gold with Alisson and he’s been key to them winning big trophiesCredit: PA

Raya hasn’t won a trophy with the Gunners but there is a general feeling that he makes them play betterThe Liverpool legend, who played against some of the great Chelsea teams, made the provocative statement after Sanchez’s silly early red card played a big part in Enzo Maresca’s side losing at Manchester United.

But statistics show that Carragher has a point.

Sanchez is not at the level of the ‘keepers at the three teams who finished above Chelsea last season – Liverpool’s Alisson Becker, Arsenal’s David Raya and Manchester City’s then custodian Ederson.

And by most measures, the Spain international is not close to matching Petr Cech and Thibaut Courtois, the No 1’s who won five PL titles between them with the Blues.

There are hints within the numbers that Sanchez is left more exposed by the defenders in front of him than his peers and the Chelsea netminders who came before him.

But the data also flags a couple of key areas in which he falls short.

Since August 2024, Sanchez has made five errors leading to goals. That is more than Raya, Alisson and Ederson put together, with the Arsenal ‘keeper having no black marks against him at all.

It may be significant that Raya and Sanchez have the same number of errors leading to shots (10) and five of those turned into goals for Chelsea’s opposition.

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It suggests Raya has defenders in front of him who are better at clearing up his messes.

The fact Sanchez has to make significantly more saves than his rivals could also be down to the quality of his defenders. His save percentage is also the highest of the four.

But although the Chelsea ‘keeper has conceded fewer goals than statistically expected, all three of his rivals outperform the xG by more.

And the result is Sanchez is level with title-winner Alisson for goals conceded per 90 minutes yet well behind Raya.

The Spaniard also has the lowest passing accuracy, well below that of Alisson and Raya.

Sanchez’s deficiency in that respect was a big reason Chelsea tried to sign AC Milan ‘keeper Mike Maignan earlier this year,

Comparing the passing stats across the years shows how much football has changed since Cech was in nets for the Blues’ first top-flight title for 50 years in 2004/5.

Back then goalkeepers were not expected to play a big role in building play.

Only Courtois’ passing accuracy in the 2016/17 season exceeds Sanchez’s over the last year or so.

But when it comes to the basic job of not conceding goals, Cech and Courtois are in a different league.

The record of just 15 that Cech and Chelsea set in Jose Mourinho’s first season stands to this day.

In none of the five title-winning seasons did the Blues concede goals at the same rate Sanchez has.

But the current Chelsea gloveman is not playing behind centre backs of the quality of John Terry Ricardo Carvalho, William Gallas and Gary Cahill, and other defenders like Ashley Cole and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Even the best goalkeeper in the world relies on those in front to protect him.

Yet even before Sanchez’s rush of blood to the head against United, there were doubts whether he was a safe enough pair of hands to lift the Premier League trophy with Chelsea.

Cech was an unbeatable wall during his time at Chelea and played a key role in winning mutiple trophiesCredit: PA:Press Association

Courtois saved Chelsea points when they needed during the league winning campaignCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd