Chelsea have shed more light on Petr Cech’s decision to sign for an ice hockey team.
Former Chelsea and Arsenal keeper Cech will make his debut for Guildford Phoenix on Sunday after penning a one-year deal with the club.
Cech returned to Chelsea in the summer as technical and performance advisor, and will be playing for Phoenix as a netminder when his schedule allows.
For the 37-year-old Czech it is the fulfilment of a childhood dream after he was forced to choose between football and ice hockey when he was 13.
A statement on Chelsea’s website said of Cech: “He is of course the most successful goalkeeper in Chelsea Football Club history, including holding our record for the most number of clean sheets.
(Image: @PetrCech/Twitter)
“Having retired from football following the Europa League final in May when he played for Arsenal against Chelsea, Cech returned to Stamford Bridge in his new technical role in June.
“At the age of 13, Cech had to make the decision between pursuing a future in ice hockey or in football, because he simply did not have time to practice both.
“Since moving to England he has frequently watched ice hockey in Guildford, as well as keeping up to speed with everything going on in the NHL in America.
Cech has recalled how, as a 16-year-old, he was captivated by his country’s ice hockey triumph in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Japan.
(Image: PA)
“It was in Nagano so the ice hockey quarter-finals, semi-finals and final were all in the morning, so I didn’t go to school,’ the keeper said.
“We all tried to find a way not to miss it.
“That year was the first the NHL allowed all the best players to go and participate, so people called it the ‘Tournament of the Century’ because every nation could choose any player they wanted from every competition.”
(Image: @gford_phoenix/Twitter)
Cech will be trying to keep Swindon Wildcats 2 out of his goal when he makes his debut for Phoenix.
The Chelsea legend kept 202 clean sheets during a 15-year Premier League career. He spent 11 of those years in west London and the other four at Arsenal .
He won four Premier League titles four FA Cups, three League Cups, the Europa League and the Champions League.
