Thomas Tuchel will make a late call on whether Edouard Mendy or Kepa Arrizabalaga starts in goal for Chelsea’s Carabao Cup final against Liverpool - and won’t let sentiment influence his decision.
The goalkeepers are both vying to start this weekend’s final at Wembley and Tuchel will make the decision after the Blues’ training session on Saturday.
Kepa has started all of Chelsea’s games in the Carabao Cup this season, but he is at risk of losing his place to Mendy for the final.
That is what happened during the Club World Cup earlier this month, with Kepa starting the semi-final before Mendy, who had just returned from the Africa Cup of Nations, replacing him in the next game.
Tuchel has described the situation now as a similar one, but he will not let sentiment cloud what decision he makes.
“First of all, I will not tell you. We will take the decision late,” he said on Friday.
“You have a reason to ask the question. In the last competition it was a very short competition and in the Club World Cup, Kepa played the semi-final and was a huge part in the semi-final.
“He brought us to the final and then we took the decision for Edou [to start the final after] coming back from the Africa Cup of Nations.
“It’s a pretty similar situation now. [It will be] the very last decision we will take after training, like always, because there is no need to take the decision now when we have one more training ahead.
“Kepa did fantastic in the period where we had to be without Edou. So it’s an uncomfortable and very comfortable situation to be in.
“He absolutely deserves to [play] and I cannot get sentimental about it. I cannot. I have to do what is in the end, in my opinion, the very best solution for the team.
“I know that this position is a very sensitive position. If Kepa was a player on the field among the other 10 players, we would not have these discussions. We would just be full of praise and besides it, because we are full of praise for him, he would feel it in minutes.
“Now he is in this one position weren’t you don’t do a lot of changes. Still, he would absolutely deserve and I will not be sentimental about the decision.”
