Chelsea coach Potter has remained undefeated since he took over, with a five-game winning streak to get the club back on track. One of the most obvious changes in the team's starting lineup since Porter took over is the replacement of goalkeeper Mendy with Kepa. And in recent games, Kepa has made many wonderful saves to prove his quality.
Although he has conceded goals in the last two games, this still cannot hide Kepa's excellent performance in October. According to the latest official data released by the Premier League, Kepa is at the top of the table with a 91.3% save rate of at least five appearances this season, far ahead of second-placed Newcastle's Pope, who has only 78.7%. And fans remember Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea, who has also made wonderful saves, not even in the top five.
Kepa has played five Premier League games this season, with Chelsea shooting on target 23 times but conceding only two, with Espanyol blocking 21 shots on target. Relying on recent performances, Kepa has firmly established himself as Chelsea's main goalkeeper, and the 8,000W transfer fee spent by the Blues has finally been played by the Spaniard.
Four years ago, Chelsea had no choice but to pay an 8,000W buyout fee to sign Kepa due to the sudden departure of Courtois, which was seen as a bad contract at the time. In his first season at Chelsea, Kepa was a regular at the club, but his performances have not been able to match the 8,000W contract. After a Carabao Cup quarrel with then-manager Maurizio Sarri, Kepa became the target of everyone.
The following season, Kepa did not go well under Frank Lampard, who did not even use veteran Caballero to play Kepa. The Spaniard was not arguing on the bench, but he also had the idea of leaving. However, due to the transfer fee of 8,000W euros, Chelsea do not want to sell the Spaniard at a low price. Kepa became a penalty shooter after Thomas Tuchel took over, and the Spaniard found his place, but thanks to Mendy's outstanding performances, the former was still unable to secure the club's main position.
Mendy's form has dropped significantly this season, and Kepa has finally taken his chance when the new coach arrives. Relying on his performances in recent rounds, he must have secured a regular position in the team before the World Cup. At the national team level, Kepa even beat De Gea to enter Spain's World Cup preliminary list.
Spanish media recently announced the 55-man list for the Spanish team's preliminary selection, of which Kepa was selected as a goalkeeper, and there was no De Gea in it. From this point of view, Kepa has now overwhelmed the Manchester United goalkeeper in all aspects. As Spain's first transfer fee goalkeeper, Kepa deserves a World Cup spot.