Chelsea have completed the signing of Emi Martinez and have thrown him right into the starting lineup today.
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Chelsea are preparing to face Brighton right now, and while it’s a fixture which has an increasing amount of history to it these days, the focus remains on events off the pitch,.
The big news today was in the team selection. In goal, new signing Emi Martinez starts just hours after being confirmed as a Chelsea player. That means the end of the line for Robert Sanchez, who is left out of the squad entirely. Xabi Alonso was asked about his team decision (and the decision to sign Martinez) ahead of the game.
Alonso defends his goalkeeper decision
“We are delighted to have him. To have a goalkeeper of his stature, his personality, I think he will bring a lot of qualities,” Alonso said of Martinez.
“I’m sure he can have a straight impact. We spoke, he felt ready to play, so here we go.”
It’s easy to be nice about a new signing – it’s more awkward to talk about the previous incumbent, who you dumped after one Premier League game.
“We’ll see [about Sanchez’s future],” Alonso said.
“It was a decision we thought was good for the team, for the club. Sometimes you have to take tough decisions because this one is an important one. But now we need to look forward.”
In other news…
Emi Martinez’s signing was confirmed today after a whirlwind week of rumours culminated quickly.
Chelsea’s team for today’s game is out, and it’s got some interesting selections from Xabi Alonso.
