Born-again keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga reflected on his save-of-the-season contender and admitted his Chelsea career had been a rollercoaster.
Kepa's brilliant display at Aston Villa was the bedrock of a lucky 2-0 win – the Blues' fifth straight victory – and his point-blank save to deny Danny Ings an equaliser was simply sensational.
Still the world's most expensive keeper at £72 million, after his move from Athletic Bilbao to Stamford Bridge four years ago, the Spaniard was only handed a chance to reboot his Chelsea career when Edouard Mendy was injured last month.
But four clean sheets in a row have cemented his place for now and Kepa, 28, was the toast of away fans after his first-half super show and fabulous sprawl to deny Ings at Villa Park.
He said: “We work on these types of things during the week, but then in the game it’s completely different. You have no time to think. You have to be ready because anything can happen. I've had good games before, but I’m feeling very well, with confidence, with and without the ball.
“Self-confidence and belief in your work, in what you’re doing, and belief in the process is very important. Of course I had really tough moments. I had really good moments, but in the end it’s like life. You have ups and downs and you have to be strong mentally, sticking with your ideas and keep working. Now I am enjoying all the work.”
Who is Chelsea's best keeper? Kepa or Mendy? Comment here
Chelsea boss Graham Potter acknowledged the impact of Kepa's convincing form since he returned to the side, saying: "He is contributing to us with clean sheets, how we’re trying to play and the environment around the place.
“I’ve got to say all three goalkeepers we’ve had here have been really, really good in that regard – supporting each other, providing good competition and that picks everybody’s level up. Kepa has found a fantastic level and made some brilliant saves that have kept us in the game and allowed us to win the points against Villa, so I'm really pleased for him."
