'I left Chelsea for Arsenal – the difference in the dressing room surprised me'

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Petr Cech admitted the intense winning mentality he experienced for over a decade at Chelsea didn't exist at Arsenal . The former goalkeeper spent 11 years at Stamford Bridge and won 13 major trophies, including four Premier League titles and the Champions League .

After losing his spot as Chelsea's number one to Thibaut Courtois in his last season at the club, Cech made the move to Arsenal in a £11million deal in 2015. He made 139 appearances for the Gunners in four years but his collection of silverware at the Emirates wasn't comparable to his trophy-laden career in west London.

Cech's only honour with Arsenal came in 2020 when he won the FA Cup , beating his former side 2-1 in the final . However, the difference in consistently winning trophies was a consequence of what Cech revealed was the biggest polarity between the London clubs.

It was in 2018 when the 43-year-old spoke to the Evening Standard and detailed the mentality difference between Chelsea and Arsenal. He said: "It will sound strange but I think generally at Arsenal there is not enough pressure.

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"Arsene [Wenger] is a real gentleman. As much as he hates losing, he stays a gentleman." Cech detailed just how low morale would be in the Chelsea dressing room if they drew games. He explained: "If you lose, you win, you lose, you win, he kind of carries on. That’s something I’ve never experienced before.

"At Chelsea , at the times when we drew, it felt like a funeral in the dressing room. It was so bad. If we drew against a big team at home, it was like: ‘Oh no, it is impossible we didn’t win at home.’ It came from everywhere: the players, the coach. Since the start when I was there, the pressure was there every game."

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It was a year later when he touched on the differences between the two clubs when he said their contrasting philosophies can both lead to success. Fresh off keeping his 200th Premier League clean sheet against Watford in 2019, Cech said: "Chelsea has the cult of being a winning machine

"You can see it from the top to the bottom. It works like that. The pressure just works in a different way. That’s why you have so many managerial changes. Arsenal obviously have the same continuity, the same manager.

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"There is a completely different philosophy and a different way of doing things. There is no right or wrong." The long-standing rivalry between the London giants reignites on Tuesday night in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final.

Arsenal hold a 3-2 advantage from their victory at Stamford Bridge last month with the winner of the clash facing either Manchester City or Newcastle at Wembley on March 22.

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