Petr Cech Biography
Petr Cech (born May 20, 1982 in Plzen, Czech Republic) is a Czech international footballer who is currently a goalkeeper for Chelsea F.C. (2006). He has earlier played for Viktoria Plzen, Chmel Blšany, Sparta Prague, and Rennes. In 2005, Cech was voted best Goalkeeper in the UEFA Champions League tournament of 2004/2005, but he is poised to miss out on this year's award to Arsenal's Jens Lehmann.
Cech made his senior-level debut as a 17-year-old for FK Chmel Blšany in 1999. Cech really came of age in the 2001/02 campaign following a €700,000 transfer to AC Sparta Praha. The young custodian won a first-team place four matches into the Czech season, and proceeded to set a national record by going 855 minutes without conceding a goal. Just for good measure, he began Sparta's UEFA Champions League campaign by shutting out holders FC Bayern München, and was not beaten until Matchday 5.
After just one season at the Letná, Cech joined Stade Rennais FC in July 2002 for a reported fee of €5m. Not one of France’s glamour clubs, the Czech was virtually ever-present as Rennes preserved their Ligue 1 status and reached the Coupe de France semi-finals. Played all but five of Rennes' games as they finished ninth.
In January he agreed a summer move to Chelsea for Ł7m (€10.3m), signing a five-year contract. When he arrived at Chelsea, there was uncertainty over whether he would be the first choice goalkeeper as Chelsea already had Carlo Cudicini, who many considered to be one of the best goalkeepers in the English League. Once the season started, he became the first choice goalkeeper at Chelsea, and has been solid between the posts for the club.
On 5th March 2005 Cech set a new Premiership record of 1025 minutes without letting in a goal. He was finally beaten by Leon McKenzie of Norwich City. He had kept a clean sheet in the league since 12th December 2004 when Thierry Henry scored for Arsenal. Cech was given a special award by the Premier League for the new record, and he was also awarded the "Golden Gloves" at the end of the 2004/5 season as the best goalkeeper in the English Premier League after keeping a record 21 clean sheets. He has firmly established himself as one of the world's finest goalkeepers, and he and Gianluigi Buffon, of Juventus, are widely regarded as the two best goalkeepers in the world.
He signed a new contract on 1st February 2006 which will keep him at the club until 2010.