Chelsea's number one waiting in the wings...

Yeah it's okay we've got Petr Cech, he's the best keeper in the world. Look at our backups as well, Ross Turnbull who's English and young, and Hilario who has vast experience. Well not exactly who I was thinking of. As much as I appreciate the quality Cech beholds and the quality of the man as one of the best in the world, he has never been the same since that horrific injury away to Reading when Stephen Hunt hit his head and in turn, Cech fractured his skull leaving him just a shadow of his former self. Turnbull's a great keeper. Always been an admirer of the man but I do not really see him as a suitable replacement for Cech and have never really seen him as Chelsea Football Club's number one. Hilario has proved he can perform at this level but sadly his age will prove a factor and I greatly expect him to leave within the next two years.



Well if you haven't guessed it by now then please let me fill you in. He's Croatian. He is 18 years old. He is on Chelsea's books. Yeah you guessed it, he's Matej Delac. If no-one reading this has heard of this young man then boy, have you missed out! He should and will be Chelsea's number one within the next three years. I won't bore you with my usual stats and facts about the boy, but I will fill you in on why he is the name to watch in the goalkeeping world.

He begun his career at Croatian side Inter Zapresic where he made his debut as a 16-year-old in 2009, saving a penalty in the 85th minute giving Zapresic a 1-0 win. A game where Delac earned man of the match. Delac continued as the club's number one goalkeeper making 15 appearances during the 2008-2009 season. Just a year before this Delac had a trial at Portuguese giants Benfica and made a huge impression however terms between the clubs failed and Delac remained in his native country.

Between 2007 and 2008 Delac received caps for Croatia U-17 and U-19 setups and made 8 appearances altogether. After this he was mysteriously called into Slaven Bilic's senior squad to play against Belarus and England in 2009. Despite not playing, he broke a record for being the youngest ever Croatian to be called up for international duty at the age of just 17.

Two days after playing England, Croatia returned home but Delac remained in London to have a medical and sign pre-contract terms with Chelsea. It was believed Chelsea had made a huge effort to follow Delac's performances in the Croatian First Division and on 17 September 2009, Inter Zapresic released a press conference confirming that Delac had signed a five-year contract for Chelsea for a fee of just three million euros which would come into effect in the summer of 2010. Until then, Delac continued at Zapresic where he remained as their number one while Chelsea paid his wages.

In the summer of 2010, Delac left Croatia and moved to London where he was introduced to the Chelsea squad, yet just days later was loaned out to Dutch side Vitesse along with other Chelsea yougsters Nemanja Matic and Slobodan Rajkovic to gain vital experience. Delac has yet to make an appearance for the Holland-based outfit, yet it will not be long before he has the gloves on there, and then making his charge to claim the very prestigious Chelsea number one jersey.

Anybody want to see or read more about Matej Delac? Here's a couple of links for you from youtube and the official Chelsea website.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRW83HL8b-w - Check out the young boy in action

http://www.chelseafc.com/page/LatestNews/0,,10268~2009298,00.html - Delac on his big move to the English Champions