Which goalkeeper has the most clean sheets in Premier League history?

To have the most clean sheets in Premier League history is a massive achievement to hold and surely this will inspire more children to try and be a great goalkeeper in the future and maybe break the current Premier League record in the coming years.

But growing up not many people aspire to be a goalkeeper in football. A lot of young people aim to be the goalscorers of the team or get the most assists possible. Goalkeeper is such a disliked position, this is because they tend to get most of the blame when things go wrong, especially if they start letting in a lot of goals over the course of a few weeks.

However, despite the supposed stigma surrounding goalkeepers, those who manage to reach the upper echelons of the sport leave behind with them a legacy. The Premier League’s goalkeeping elite remain some of the highest paid in England’s top flight, this season for instance see’s David De Gea as the third highest paid player in the Premier League.

Aside from the riches comes arguably the most important feats a player can achieve. Silverware, alongside the accolades, both team based and individual, remain the ultimate footballing grail for any player. For a goalkeeper this translates to goals conceded and clean sheets. These stats are what a goalkeeper will be based upon. The differences in what can make a goalkeeper great lies in these statistics.

Over the years we have seen many world class goalkeepers grace the Premier League, however the debate remains who is the best goalkeeper to have stood between the sticks. Based on personal accolades we can look at who boasts the most clean sheets within England’s top flight, this can give us a good indication as to who sits as a genuine contender. Considering this argument we will take a look at who remains top of the list.

So… Who has the most clean sheets in Premier League history?

Petr Cech

With a record of 202 clean sheets the great Petr Cech has the most clean sheets. During his incredible Premier League career the Czech international made a total of 443 appearances for two different clubs (Arsenal and Chelsea).

Petr Cech is a legend

✅ Most clean sheets in PL history
✅ Most clean sheets in a PL season
✅ Most Golden Gloves in PL history

✅ Fastest goalkeeper to reach 100 clean sheets in Premier League history

✅ First goalkeeper to go 1000 minutes in Premier League without conceding pic.twitter.com/8rtQUWp7OI

— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) May 27, 2020

Petr Cech – Chelsea History

During his 11 seasons at Chelsea, he recorded a total of 162 clean sheets. The greatest ever by a Chelsea goalkeeper.

Petr Cech made his first appearance for Chelsea in the 2004/2005 season. He started the opening game of the season against Manchester United at home, he kept a clean sheet that game and the team won 1-0.

In his opening season he made a total of 35 league appearances for the Blues and as well as winning the league title, he also won the Premier League Golden Glove award as he kept 24 clean sheets (award for most clean sheets in a season). This number of 24 clean sheets is still the record for most clean sheets in a single Premier League season.

The following season (2005/2006) he made 34 league appearances and again won the Golden Glove award for the second season running. Out of 34 appearances he kept 18 clean sheets. Chelsea again won the League Title that season too.

?? On this day in 2004, Chelsea signed the best goalkeeper in Premier League history – Petr Čech.

– 228 clean sheets in 494 games, most in PL history
– 4x PL Golden Glove winner, no one has won more
– 4x Premier League winner
– 1x Champions League winner pic.twitter.com/Q3L3Ads3ry

— LDN (@LDNFootbalI) February 9, 2021

Turning point in his Chelsea career

In the 2006/2007 season the Czech international experienced one of the worst injuries in Premier League history. Cech was in goal for Chelsea against Reading, around 5 minutes into the game he went down after a challenge with winger Stephen Hunt. The challenge left the goalkeeper with a fractured skull, meaning he would be sidelined for nearly an entire season, in fact he missed 24 games in total for Chelsea. Therefore he only made 20 league appearances that season.

Since his head injury some people would argue Petr has never quite been the same. However, his stats would prove that claim wrong. in the 2007/8 season he made a total of 26 league appearances and still kept 15 clean sheets which is remarkable considering he may never have been able to play again after his life threatening head injury.

The following season (2008/9) Petr was slowly getting back to his best. He made a total of 35 league appearances with a total of 19 clean sheets. Again he didn’t win the Golden Glove but it was a remarkable season for the Czech international.

During the 2009/10 season Cech again recorded double figures in terms of clean sheets for Chelsea. He achieved 17 that season and Chelsea went onto win the league title again for the third time during his time at the club.

On this day: 2006 – Petr Cech received his head injury (vs Reading) from Stephen Hunt, causing him to wear headgear in future games. #CFC #Chelsea pic.twitter.com/KDSvNnH98L

— Chad ⭐⭐ (@ChelseaChadder) October 14, 2021

Landmark season

The 2010/11 season some would say was a landmark season for Petr as he made 38 league appearances for Chelsea, therefore meaning he didn’t miss a single game. He kept only 15 clean sheets, but did win the Golden Glove award for only the second time in his career.

Last few years at Chelsea

In his last few seasons at Chelsea, Cech made many appearances for the Blues and in total kept 45 clean sheets out of 111 appearances which is quite amazing considering towards the end of his Chelsea days he was falling out of favour.

Before leaving the Blue side of London, he did win one more league title in the 2014/15 season. He also won his third golden glove in the 2013/14 season.

Petr Cech – Move to Arsenal

In June 2015, the most successful goalkeeper Chelsea had ever had moved over to the red side of London, Arsenal for around £10 million.

In his opening season (2015/16) with The Gunners he made 34 league appearances and achieved 16 clean sheets. This season deservedly earned him his fourth and last Golden Glove award of his career.

Similarly in his second season at Arsenal (2016/17) , he made 35 league appearances and still kept 12 clean sheets. The following season he again made 34 league appearances and kept 11 clean sheets. Then during his final season (2018/19) with The Gunners he made just 7 league appearances, keeping just 2 clean sheets.

He then shortly after announced his retirement from professional football in July 2019. After being regarded as one of the best goalkeepers to ever grace the world of football.

Petr Cech has called the Europa League final between Arsenal and his former club Chelsea "the ultimate dream", as he prepares to retire from playing.

? https://t.co/xvnToBwvLz pic.twitter.com/AqVJt6JN5w

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) May 10, 2019

Will anyone ever beat his record of most clean sheets in the Premier League?

With Petr Cech having 202 clean sheets to his name, this record looks highly unbeatable for many more years to come.

Out of all the goalkeepers in the Premier League at this moment in time, only Hugo Lloris and David De Gea are in with a slim chance of catching the Czech international. De Gea currently has 123 clean sheets for Manchester United, while Lloris has 107 for Tottenham.

This leaves Lloris with 95 more clean sheets to achieve before retiring or leaving Spurs in order to equal the record. With De Gea it leaves him with 79 more clean sheets to achieve before he retires or was to leave Man Utd to equal the record. These achievements aren’t impossible but it will take a lot to beat the great Petr Cech’s record.

So overall, Petr Cech is set to keep hold of his incredible record of the most clean sheets in Premier League history for many more years to come. But, regardless of whether his record is ever beaten or not, he will surely always be one of or even the greatest goalkeeper in Premier League history. After recovering from a horrible life threatening head injury in 2006, to making hundreds more appearances for Chelsea and Arsenal in future seasons, he really is a true legend who should and will never be forgotten.

We hope you enjoyed the article ‘Who has the most clean sheets in the Premier League?’ Will anyone ever overtake Petr Cech? Who are the best goalkeepers in the Premier League now? Let us know!

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