Out Of The Blue: Veteran Aussie Glovesman Mark Schwarzer Joins Chelsea In One-Year Deal

Alan Duffy

9th, July 2013

6 Comments

By Alan Duffy

Soccer - FA Cup - Third Round Replay - Blackpool v Fulham - Bloomfield Road

In a move which has come rather out of the blue, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has secured the services of veteran Aussie goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer on a one-year deal.

40-year-old Schwarzer has been one of the most consistent ‘keepers in the top division for years now and after turning down a new contract at Fulham, he was available on a free.

The former Middlesbrough man is hardly in his first flushes of youth, but Schwarzer was still an impressive performer last season for the Cottagers and the deal looks like a rather clever piece of business from Mourinho, with Schwarzer providing experienced back-up to Blues’ number one Petr Cech.

Young ‘keeper Thibaut Courtois, who is out on loan for another season with Atletico Madrid, remains the long-term successor to Cech, but until the Belgian returns to Stamford Bridge, Chelsea remain well stocked between the posts.

Posted in Chelsea, Transfers & Rumours

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6 Comments

  1. Matt in Chattanooga says:

    very smart signing for the Blues. he’s an experienced keeper that will provide solid cover in case of injury to Cech, for a free transfer. while he is not in the top-10 (or 20) world keepers, he has proven to be quite good in the league for years now, so the Blues can feel confident in case he needs to cover for a while if Cech goes down.

    Schwarzer wants to play for a solid team to keep his chances up for WC14 and Chelsea will give him some games in cup ties and maybe the odd league game, so while he won’t be a number one, he’ll still get some time in. he also wanted to keep his family in england since he has been settled for some time now – as a bonus he gets to stay in west london and only move a few miles down the road.

    this is the definition of win-win. smart move all around.

  2. battersea blues says:

    Good signing, I really hope he gets at least league cup games.

  3. syndex says:

    good signing ? I always thought a second choice keeper should be pushing the current choice or the younger player (how old is cech?) who will take over, neither of which fits here.

  4. Matt in Chattanooga says:

    @syndex – absolutely a good signing. Schwarzer will be second choice for this season since Courtois is once again on loan at Atl Madrid (where he was the best keeper in La Liga last season). Schwarzer will provide cover for Cech, not necessarily push him for the number one spot. Although Schwarzer has had some great outings for the Cottagers the last few seasons and may warrant a few starts.

  5. KingB3113 says:

    Cech is so overrated. Chelsea should be starting with Courtois right now, the guy looks more than ready.

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