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Petr Cech has said he is playing for his future at Arsenal as he still doesn’t know what will happen when his contract expires at the end of the season.
Cech, 36, has so far managed to hold on to his position as Unai Emery’s No. 1 in the Premier League, with Leno set to make his Arsenal debut in Thursday’s Europa League game against FC Vorskla, but he admitted he still has to fight to keep his spot, and is unsure what the future holds.
“I’m in the last year of the contract so I guess it depends on my performances, the way I play and the way I stay fit throughout the season,” Cech told the Evening Standard. “Then we’ll see what happens next.
“I have to work hard not only to make sure the manager picks me for the weekend but as well that he sticks with me.”
Cech also said he’s used to competition throughout his career, even at Chelsea when it appeared his No. 1 spot was uncontested.
“The goalkeeper situation is complicated as only one can play so the competition is bigger and at the moment I’ve been playing and I try to do my best and hope the manager is happy with my performances,” Cech said. “I’ve always had great goalkeepers [competing with me].
“David Ospina was great as was Carlo Cudicini and Hilario behind me who pushed me all my career so I have to make sure I’m ready. In sport this is the way it goes — you always have someone waiting for your failure so they can jump in and you have to find a way to keep your spot.”
Cech will be 37 by the time his Arsenal contract expires, but he wouldn’t give a prediction for how long he can keep playing.
“It is a question I don’t know the answer to because I always say the motivation will be the key to how long I’m going to play,” he said. “I don’t like doing things at 95 percent.
“I always want to do things at 100 percent and you have to be fit enough to do that. So, it’ll be a question of whether my body is fit enough to allow me to do that and if my head is fit, too.
“If the motivation stays the same, I’d like to carry on.”
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