With the whistle of the Olympic Stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan, the Blues Chelsea won the Europa League trophy with a 4-1 victory over Arsenal, and Cech's figure was particularly lonely in the ocean of many blue carnivals. However, compared with the 1:4 defeat, this game is more tragic as the last game of the veteran Cech's career, and for the Blues fans, the joy of victory is also a little less because of this man who dedicated his good years to the Blues, and there is more regret and reluctance.
Cech was lonely next to the Chelsea logo in the Europa League final
The experienced Czech veteran finally waved goodbye to his beloved football and his 20-year football career on this day, and all he left the world with was his repeated struggle to save in front of the goal and the unforgettable "tank soldier" shape.
< h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > genius turned out to be the first czech god to grow</h1>
In 2001, when the previous generation of door gods such as Kahn and Tordo were at their peak, and it was also that year, Buffon joined Juventus to open up the era of "raw Buffon", Casillas began his legendary career at the Bernabeu, but in that era of underdeveloped networks, few people noticed that another door god also opened an extraordinary first chapter in the first year of his career.
In the 2001-02 season, the 19-year-old Peter Cech came out and broke the Czech domestic league record for the time not to concede goals at Sparta Prague, and in the 27 league rounds in the 27 league games in the 01/02 season, Cech completed 17 clean sheets and achieved a terrifying record of 903 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal.
Young Cech during the Spartan period in Prague
In the Champions League, he not only helped the team defeat fierce rivals such as Feyenoord, Sparta Moscow and Porto, but also did not lose goals in more than 1,000 consecutive minutes of play. Such exaggerated statistics are staggering, but also quickly attracted the attention of European powers, in the summer of 2002 Cech transferred to Rennes for 5 million euros, during which time he played in 70 league rounds in two years to complete 22 clean sheets, 78 matches in all competitions, 27 clean sheets.
Without staying in Ligue 1 for long, Cech was quickly recruited by Chelsea, who spent a lot of money on the transfer market, and the Czech genius, who was worth 1300w euros, replaced Cudicini in front of the Goal of Stamford Bridge under the arrangement of mad Mourinho from the first season of arrival, and this station was 11 years.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > have stepped on the top of the mountain and have fallen to the bottom</h1>
2004 was a magical year for world football, and for Petr Cech, it was also an unforgettable year in his career. That year's European Championship, "Greek mythology" let fans see the charm of football, but few people paid attention to the fact that the Czech Republic also created its own miracle that year.
At Euro 2004, the star-studded Czech Republic was home to Golden Ball Mr. Nedved, high school striker Jan Kole, violinist Rossiki on the pitch, midfield core Popowski, the current Golden Boot Baros and other stars, and no one cared about the 22-year-old goalkeeper before the game.
But it was Cech's outstanding performance that helped the Eastern European Iron Horse to win 5 clean sheets from the qualifiers to the main tournament, and even defeated the strong enemy without being favored, not only breaking through from the death group, but also killing all the way to the final four, although it was eventually lost to the hands of Greece, who was more successful in the dark horse. That year, with his outstanding and solid performance, Cech won the personal honor of the best goalkeeper of the European Championship, which was unique for a while.
Czech Golden Generation in 2004
The Czechs, who have been tempered by the competition, have an unprecedented surge in confidence, and the hot state has continued into his Premier League debut season, which has been a perfect performance, behind the famous Blues steel defense in history, Cech will always be the most reassuring last line of defense.
The 1,052-minute league record of not conceding a goal in the Premier League, the Golden Glove Award for the Best Goalkeeper in the Premier League, 21 clean sheets against opponents, only 15 goals conceded in the entire season, and an English top league title that has been waiting for 50 years, these data proudly show the terrifying strength of that year's "car one", and the backline led by Petr Cech and others suffocated the opponent.
From the perspective of personal performance, whether it is goalkeeper selection, goal line technology, hand throwing ability or ball level are world-class, that year's Premier League Arena Cech and his back line can hardly see the opponent, a defeat is difficult to find. However, it was a little regrettable that Chelsea was defeated by Garcia's famous "ghost ball" in the Champions League that year, and stopped at the Champions League semi-finals.
In the 0506 season, Chelsea, as always, tied the Premier League with absolute strength and won the Premier League title early, but met the dream two Barcelona at that time in the Champions League and hated to get out. Chelsea's defence was no longer watertight that season, but as long as Cech was on the pitch, the defence remained stable.
What many people don't know is that 14 months before and after that season, Cech played with a shoulder injury, and Cech exchanged his persistence for the Blues' two priceless Premier League trophies, and the glorious years that are now remembered as amazing.
Invincible Chelsea in 2005
But perhaps great men are doomed to suffer, and in 2006, Cech, who was already famous at the time, suffered a series of heavy blows in his career.
At that forged classic 2006 World Cup, Nedved's tears in Germany became his last song in the Czech national team, and also recorded the sadness of the end of the Czech golden generation, in just two years, the Czech Republic from the european championship final four to the World Cup group stage out, Cech experienced an unhappy summer.
Before he could recover from the experience of world cup disappointment, fate gave Cech another blow, and this stick was impartially smashed on the most fragile skull. Shortly after the start of the 8th round of the 2006–07 Premier League match against Reading, Cech was hit on the head by Reading player Hunter on the knee during a strike, fainted on the spot, and later provided information from the hospital indicating that Cech's skull had been severely injured, the injured area had been dented, and even almost killed Cech.
Cech was seriously injured instantly
But Cech did not succumb to this heavy blow, and under his indomitable resistance, he returned to the stadium in only three months, unlike before, the image of Cech playing with a protective helmet every time, and the same as before, his posture of resisting in front of the goal line.
As soon as he returned to the arena, Cech dispelled people's worries with his magical performance of not conceding a goal in the Premier League for 810 minutes, and he played well in the finals of the League Cup and FA Cup, helping the Blues win the championship. In this regard, there is one more player known as the "tank soldier" in the Premier League, which has a unique landscape and a good story of phoenix nirvana.
However, Cech's life is destined to fight against fate, first Mourinho's departure has changed the way the team plays, and at the same time in the league, Ferguson's Manchester United have launched a powerful attack on the throne, chelsea have struggled to catch up but still missed the Premier League trophy due to the difference in goal difference.
After overcoming helmet discomfort and injury troubles, Cech and the Blues moved forward in the knockout stages of the 2007-08 Champions League, and after two epic showdowns against Fenerbahce and rivals Liverpool, the spirited Chelsea marched south to Moscow to meet their rivals Manchester United for a season.
However, the heavy rain in Moscow ruthlessly extinguished the blue flames, that night the goddess of luck did not care for the Blues, Drogba and Lampard shot at the post, and then Petr Cech although he performed well in the penalty shootout to save the penalty of The Golden Ball winner C Ronaldo, but Terry's strange slip still made the peak Chelsea rub shoulders with the Champions League champion, that night Terry's tears were heartbreaking, that night Moscow did not belong to Cech, nor did it belong to the strong Blues.
Cech struggled to save Ronaldo's penalty but was powerless to prevent the defeat
Bad luck continues, in the 2008 European Championship, the elderly Czech Republic lost two consecutive games in the case of the first victory, the stable Cech made a low-level mistake in the last life and death battle, and his self-condemning kneeling figure on the ground was helpless and regrettable, but competitive sports were cruel, and soon the media's overwhelming doubts made Cech fall to the bottom for a while.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > has gone through a thousand sails and never fallen into the clouds, and the old boys are back to the top</h1>
The following seasons were ups and downs for the Blues, but Cech remained stable, they experienced Scolari's lows, but also experienced the rebound brought by Hiddink, experienced the Champions League 4-4 against Liverpool's world-famous game, and experienced the helpless indignation of the Stamford Bridge massacre.
After Carlo Ancelotti joined Chelsea, the Blues got back on track, and Cech won the Golden Glove award that year, which also helped the team win the Premier League title and the FA Cup after a two-year absence, once again, he proved to the world that he is still the "god of the three doors".
Petr Cech has won the Premier League Gold Glove several times
In the 2010-11 season, Cechda became the Blues' record 312 appearances, becoming the most foreign player in Chelsea's history, and the name Cech became a legendary name that must be mentioned when mentioning Chelsea. Cech was named Chelsea Player of the Year this season, but that year Chelsea played ups and downs, and Ancelotti was also dismissed at the end of the season.
Chelsea in these seasons is no longer the indestructible and invincible Blues, Although Cech's play is stable, it cannot save the team every time, and the peak era that belongs to Chelsea seems to flow away little by little with the hourglass of time, and Chelsea seems to be powerless to regain its former glory.
In 2012, Cech finally arrived at the age of standing, his Blues comrades have also reached the tail end of the peak, Boas in Chelsea's ambitions are not paid, leaving interim manager Di Matteo a mess, when the Chelsea league has basically missed the championship, the first leg of the Champions League knockout round 1:3 defeat to Napoli, the promotion situation is in jeopardy.
Just when everyone lamented that chelsea's era had finally come to an end, this group of veterans burst out of a strong willpower, and after reversing Napoli in a backwater battle, they eliminated Benfica to reach the final four. In the semi-finals, they met their old rivals Barca, and no one looked favorably on the elderly Chelsea. But looking back, maybe this was destined to be a year for this group of old boys, Cech resisted in the first round, the mighty Messi met the omnipotent Cech, and the Argentine was unable to penetrate Cech's ten fingers.
Keeping a clean sheet with Barca, Cech is indispensable
In the second leg, the whole team was even more dedicated, after falling behind 0:2, Cech repeatedly dedicated himself to the rescue, and finally Chelsea unbelievably completed a two-goal reversal in the case of 10 people, picking out the then indispensable "Dream Three" Barca with an aggregate score of 3:2, and challenging german hegemon Bayern Munich as a dark horse.
Like the semi-finals, Bayern Munich, with its best time and place, took full advantage, firing 43 shots on goal in 120 minutes, but under Cech's miraculous play in succession, Chelsea stubbornly dragged the game into a penalty shootout 1-1. Cech's performance in the penalty shootout made Bayern even more desperate, not only did he pounce on every penalty in the right direction, but he also saved Oric and Schweinsteiger penalties in succession in the case of Mata's first penalty, injecting strong confidence into the team.
Cech lifted the Premier League trophy
In the end, this group of old boys went black to the end and lifted the Champions League trophy through their strong resilience without being favored. From Moscow to Munich, 1960 kilometers, this group of old boys walked for a full 5 years to finally reach the top of Europe, Petr Cech and this group of old boys with their indomitable struggle, in the most difficult moments to climb to the peak of fate, their stories are moving.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > wear a helmet to be a warrior, remove the helmet to become a legend</h1>
Time always passes inadvertently, and the beauty of those times is diluted by time before we have time to savor it, thinking back to the Zola era in 2000, when Chelsea's meritorious goalkeeper De Huyer was officially replaced by the young Cudicini, who was just over 33 years old. Five years later, Cech took the lead from Rennes, and Kudicini, at the peak of the fashion, was 33 years old.
In 2015, after experiencing the brief glory of the "car phase II" and the national team's unambitiousness, the 33-year-old Cech also had to stand in front of the goal of fate and meditate bitterly, Courtois's performance allowed him to leave with peace of mind, so he chose the Emirates Stadium 12 kilometers away, collected the blue armor, bid farewell to the Blues fans who accompanied him for 11 years, and also sealed the blue memories that belonged to Cech and Chelsea fans.
Chelsea fans unfurled banners thanking Cech
On the other side of London, Arsenal are no longer really champions- and they can only compete for the top four, but even so, Cech still contributes his residual heat in this position, saving Arsenal's already weak backline with one save after another. When he first returned to Stamford Bridge as a Gunner in the same year, Cech almost walked into chelsea's dressing room, which made many fans laugh but there was a little bit of reluctance behind it.
Returning to Stamford Bridge, Petr Cech remains the Darlings' favourite
On January 15, 2019, Cech officially announced his official retirement at the end of the 2018-19 season. Arsenal's time was not a success for the team and For Cech, but for Arsenal fans, they were only grateful to the Czech goalkeeper, although they did not dedicate the best years, but in the last years of his career Cech did everything a professional player should do, this time he turned away, taking away the memories of a generation of green onions and the unique "tank hat" on the Premier League.
Cech's cup with Arsenal was one of the few highlight moments
In his 15 years in the Premier League, Cech has made 443 appearances, 202 clean sheets, 280 wins, and 15 titles, and Petr Cech has kept clean sheets for the first place among all Premier League goalkeepers, 33 more than second-placed David James, and won a total of four Premier League Golden Glove Awards. As the man removes his helmet, these numbers all speak of his greatness, and this will also be enjoyed by posterity along with his "tank cap" and those classic fragments.
202 clean sheets were premier league goalkeeper records
On May 6, 2019, the Emirates Stadium officially bid farewell to Cech, and fate is sometimes so magical, this man has struggled for Chelsea's blue almost all his life, but at the end of his career, he was loved by Gunners fans.
In his bones at the same time flowing red and blue blood, he regards each club as his own place of struggle, whether he is a young man in fresh clothes, or a hero's late middle age, he dedicates all the heat of his body to the team emblem on his chest, which may be the reason why this big man can be loved by many fans.
The Emirates Stadium bid farewell to Cech
The final Europa League final did not give Cech a good ending, he could only watch his old club get the trophy, the opposition between blue and red was so harmonious in this man at this time, after this battle, the Premier League no longer had a "tank soldier", but the Premier League is full of your legend.
Just like a few years ago you gave the role of patron saint to Courtois, this time, you can leave with confidence because of Leno's outstanding performance, leave the hot land you love, and leave your career that you have struggled for more than ten years, but what will not leave is your amazing saves on the field, those epic battles, and the indomitable fighting spirit contained in that hat, which will be sealed on the ground of Stamford Bridge and haunt the clouds of Emirates Stadium in the future.
A generation of door gods bid farewell to the greenery
Goodbye, Czech tank soldier, Peter Cech.