Djordje Petrovic is making the most of an unexpected opportunity at Chelsea. 

The goalkeeper was signed as an understudy in August, but a recent injury to No1 Robert Sanchez has presented him with an early chance to impress. 

He was the hero of the Blues' Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Newcastle, saving a spot kick from Matt Ritchie in the penalty shootout victory. 

Ahead of Chelsea's match against Crystal Palace tonight, we take a look at Petrovic's chances of establishing himself as Mauricio Pochettino's first-choice keeper. 

Penalty record

No one who paid attention to Petrovic's career prior to arriving at Chelsea will have been surprised at his penalty heroics against Newcastle. 

In April 2023, the then New England Revolution goalkeeper became the fastest player in MLS history to have made five spot-kick saves. 

The fifth stop came in just his 31st match for the franchise, during which he had faced a total of 14 penalties. 

In June 2023, Petrovic was named in the MLS All-Star team. Scouts from European leagues began to take notice of the Serbian, who began his career at Cukaricki. 

Ligue 1 outfit Nantes and Nottingham Forest subsequently had bids in the region of £6.2million rejected over the summer. 

Eventually, it was Chelsea that persuaded the Revolution to part with Petrovic. The Blues struck a deal worth £14m for the keeper, having already paid Brighton £25million for Sanchez. 

Hitchcock verdict

Someone uniquely qualified to evaluate Petrovic’s move to Chelsea was the former Blues shot-stopper Kevin Hitchcock, who is the current goalkeeping coach at New England Revolution. 

The Londoner spent 13 years at Stamford Bridge and was naturally asked for his thoughts on the new signing, who had replaced Matt Turner — now at Nottingham Forest — back in 2022. 

Hitchcock said: "I saw he had this amazing plyometric jump, that was a big thing for me. That is what I like to work with. 

"I saw the things I wanted to develop in a goalkeeper and so we brought Djordje in. 

"He had a bit of time to find his feet in America, settle into the club. Then he came into the team and did well. From there, it snowballed. 

"Everything on the training ground we worked on, Djordje was producing in his performances." 

Hitchcock had no doubts that Petrovic would be a success at Chelsea. 

He said: "He will go to England ready-made. He can speak well, is good at communicating and organising players in the penalty area, so they know what he wants." 

Sanchez battle

Sanchez is set to return from injury within the next two weeks, setting up a battle for goalkeeping supremacy at Chelsea. 

Having come into the team, Petrovic has done nothing wrong, giving Pochettino a dilemma. 

Sanchez has more Premier League experience but he has made mistakes since joining from Brighton, where he had lost his place in the team. 

Despite signing two goalkeepers in the summer, Chelsea have also been linked with Arsenal's out-of-favour Aaron Ramsdale. 

But the 24-year-old Petrovic may have the potential to save the club some money. 

The only way Chelsea will find out if he is good enough to do so, however, is to continue giving him the chance to prove it.