Petr Cech has joined Rio Ferdinand in being inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame for 2023.
The former goalkeeper – who represented Chelsea and Arsenal in his career – was selected after a vote by fans across the world from a 15-person shortlist.
Cech becomes the 18th player to join the Hall of Fame after eight legendary stars were inducted in both 2021 and 2022 and Ferdinand was the first to be added this year.
He joins Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger and Ferdinand in the ‘Class of 2023’, with Ferguson and Wenger the first managers to ever be inducted.
Cech is one of the greatest goalkeepers in Premier League history, holding the record for the most clean sheets with 202 in 443 top-flight appearances.
The former Czech Republic star is the second goalkeeper to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, joining Peter Schmeichel.
After growing up in communist Czechoslovakia, Cech moved to Chelsea from Rennes in 2004 and quickly become a fans favorite at Stamford Bridge.
In his debut campaign, he conceded just 15 goals and kept 24 clean sheets – both records for a single season – as the Blues won the Premier League title for the first time.
This was the first of four titles he won with the club and Cech was the fastest keeper to reach 50 and 100 clean sheets in the top flight, while he also won four Golden Glove awards.
Known as a superb shot stopper, but also an organiser of the defence, Cech had the ability to speak eight different languages.
He also showed remarkable courage to recover from a potentially life-threatening injury when he fractured his skull against Reading in 2006.
After making 333 Premier League appearances for Chelsea, he lost his place in the team to Thibaut Courtois during the 2014/15 campaign and ended up moving to Arsenal at the end of that season.
He racked up 110 league appearances for the Gunners across four years before retiring in 2019 when he moved back to the Blues as a technical and performance advisor – a role he held until June last year.
Reflecting on his achievement of being inducted into the Hall of Fame, Cech told the Premier League: ‘When I was a child growing up in communist Czechoslovakia, playing in the Premier League was an unimaginable dream.
