Brad Friedel backed Djordje Petrovic for a move to Tottenham Hotspur but he is now set to join Chelsea instead.
Djordje Petrovic is poised to complete a move to Chelsea just weeks after being backed for a move to Tottenham Hotspur.
Tottenham had a big decision to make between the sticks this summer.
Hugo Lloris clearly isn’t the player he was and Tottenham have chosen to move on with a new goalkeeper.
Spurs have brought in Italian goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario from Empoli, hoping that he can become their number one stopper for years to come.
Tottenham picked Vicario despite being given something of a nudge towards signing Djordje Petrovic.
Some Premier League fans may not be too aware of Petrovic, who was a star in his native Serbia with Cukaricki.
Petrovic then moved to New England Revolution last summer, arriving as a replacement for Matt Turner as he moved to Arsenal.
Petrovic has excelled in Major League Soccer and his superb displays saw him tipped for a move to Tottenham.
Brad Friedel admits recommending Djordje Petrovic to other clubs
Former Spurs goalkeeper and Tottenham ambassador Brad Friedel was pushing the idea of Petrovic to Spurs.
The American is a former New England Revolution coach too, so he has had one eye on Petrovic’s progress.
Speaking in June, Friedel suggested that Petrovic should have been in contention with David Raya to become Tottenham’s new goalkeeper.
Raya was the top target before Spurs signed Vicario but Friedel suggested that the ‘excellent’ Petrovic would have fit the bill.
Fast forward a couple of months and Petrovic is indeed heading to London – but not with Tottenham.
Chelsea have agreed a deal worth around £14million and will be announcing Petrovic as their new second-choice goalkeeper soon enough.
Friedel has now been talking about Petrovic again, admitting to Sky Sports that he did actually recommend him to unnamed Premier League clubs.
Given his ties to Tottenham and his previous comments, it’s fairly safe to assume that Spurs were one of those teams.
Instead, Petrovic heading to Chelsea and Friedel believes that he has a real chance to become their number one stopper down the line.
“Tremendous worker, tremendous shot-stopper, I think when we do dive into the stats, you’ll see that he very rarely leaves bad rebounds,” said Friedel. “He’s exceptional at holding shots when you see a lot of goalkeepers try to parry shots these days. He’s only 23, 24 years of age, he has just a wonderful career ahead of him – he’s been the best goalkeeper in MLS by a country mile.”
“I’ve mentioned him to quite a few teams over in the Premier League and I’m glad that he’s going to be landing at one of the big clubs and also with a staff I just couldn’t speak more highly about.”
“Sanchez is there and Djordje is going to have to go in and prove himself and fight for his place. I think he’ll be given a chance, I don’t know how soon that chance will be, but once he’s given the chance, I don’t see him being displaced,” he added.
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