Cech: Gunners clean sheet blip misleading

Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech insists this season’s poor clean sheet record is not a true reflection of his form, but is adamant he can ill-afford to let standards slip.

The 34-year-old took the Premier League Golden Glove award last season after having 16 shutouts to his name, a tally that dwarfs the six he has achieved so far this campaign.

But Cech feels the numbers are no major cause for concern at the back, conceding 22 times in 20 games including three in their last top-flight outing against Bournemouth.

And while the former Czech international is confident he is still more than up to task of being Arsene Wenger’s number one, he is aware standards must remain high with David Ospina among those waiting in the wings.

(Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

“So far it’s a kind of a different campaign because I think I have been doing well but if you take clean sheets, we had a run of games where we conceded at least one goal,” he said.

“The most important thing is obviously that the team wins but it is good sometimes to have a clean sheet and that solid base at the back.

“We have conceded a number of penalties in games where the penalty was the only goal [we conceded], so sometimes you have these runs which are a bit unlucky against you but you would like to do something extra and find one extra save.

“Overall it is a season in which I am playing at the level I need to be at. You want to improve every game and keep the standard up the whole time – you don’t want to have a period where you are not doing so well or you are not where you should be, which hasn’t happened yet so hopefully I can keep like that.”