No Arsenal player understands Jose Mourinho better than Petr Cech.
In Mourinho’s first spell in charge at Stamford Bridge the towering keeper formed a spine of success with John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.
For over a decade Cech was the undisputed number one at Stamford Bridge and to most fans and pundits among the top five in the game.
The return of Tino Cortois from a loan spell at Atletico Madrid turned things around but it was with a heavy heart that Mourinho allowed Cech to leave with Arsenal unlikely to have been his venue of choice.
On Saturday a clean sheet from his former keeper will pile the pressure onto Mourinho but with the incentive of a nine point lead over United to go for Cech won’t let sentiment feature in his preparations.
“It is another six-point game,” the keeper told Arsenal Player. “We drew the match against Spurs and there is a little gap between us and Liverpool, so you want to make sure that you stay very close and that every time they drop points, you are ready to take advantage.
“With United, they are behind us, so to leave them [further] behind is one aim and the second thing is to stay near the top, within touching distance of everyone else.
“If United want to think about closing the gap and having a chance to fight for the title, they need the three points.
“It is a big game for both teams and they will try to give themselves a chance, and we have to be ready to adapt to their way of playing. As the match goes, you want to impose your game and control what is happening.
“It is always a big game, regardless of the positions of both teams in the table but this time I think it could be a really significant win for us and a really significant loss for them.”
Cech has played in all 11 Premier League matches this season, losing just three goals in five matches away from home.
