Petr Cech Contacted Thibaut Courtois with Advice After Alexis Sanchez Clash

Chelsea's Petr Cech may have lost his starting job to his younger colleague Thibaut Courtois, but the veteran goalkeeper remains a consummate professional and great team-mate. The Belgium international revealed on Sunday that Cech called him to offer advice after Courtois' clash with Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez which resulted in a head injury.

Cech famously suffered a fracture to his skull in 2006 after a duel with Stephen Hunt, an injury that has led to the Czech international playing with a headguard to this day. As reported by the Daily Mail's Matt Barlow, the 32-year-old decided to use his experience to stop the same from happening to Courtois. The Belgian explained what he said:

"

He told me that in the Premier League, maybe some strikers really go in against the keepers, so sometimes it is better to protect your head, to go down quicker and with your back or your shoulder protecting your head.

That was a tip he gave me and it’s good because, when you come into a new league sometimes things are different.

In Spain there is more organisation, maybe more football, while here maybe some teams are going quicker with the long ball and rushing it to the front.

"

The veteran was the Blues' undisputed starter for most of the past decade but has only appeared in one Premier League fixture so far in 2014-15, filling in for Courtois after he was knocked out by Sanchez against Arsenal.

Cech's behaviour throughout the process of losing his job has been exemplary, however, and his reaching out to Courtois is yet another example. Via Dutch-language paper Het Laatste Nieuws' Kristof Terreur, they coexist tremendously despite being rivals for the same position:

They've also enjoyed partaking in tomfoolery together:

Courtois was widely expected to be handed the starting position after he returned from a loan spell with Atletico Madrid, establishing himself as arguably the best young goalkeeper in the world. Fans wondered what that would mean for Cech's future, and transfer speculation soon started to emerge.

Cech remained at Stamford Bridge and fought for his spot, but against the 22-year-old Courtois, it was never going to be a fair fight. The Belgian No. 1 represents the future of the team; unless he struggles tremendously, he will be picked ahead of the Blues legend.

Rather than resent the club and Courtois for his situation, Cech has remained the perfect team-mate. He voiced his concerns in an interview with Czech radio (h/t Goal.com's Wayne Veysey), but he didn't let those concerns influence how he acts on the practice field or as a team-mate:

"

I have not spoken to anyone but I think they know me well enough at the club to know that the situation is definitely not the way I would imagine.

With the Euros [in 2016] and the national team in mind, there is no time for me to sit on the bench and not to play.

If the situation will not start to improve for me, then I will want to solve it.

"

Watching a team-mate or a young player suffer a head injury after what he went through must have been difficult, but few players in Cech's situation would pick up the phone and enquire about his rival during the international break.

Nobody knows what the future holds for the veteran, and given Courtois' excellent form, he may well leave the Blues in the near future. But after a decade of loyal service and incredible gestures like this one, there's no question he will receive a standing ovation from fans and team-mates when he does.

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