Premier League legend Petr Cech has recalled what Juventus goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny said about Alisson Becker before he joined Liverpool.
Alisson and Szczesny were teammates for a year at Roma, with the Polish goalkeeper assuming the No.1 shirt. Ali took the shirt a year later when Szczesny left for Juventus. But according to Cech, the Pole already knew how good his back-up was.
“I think it comes from his [Alisson’s] natural personality as well, when you see him there is composure there is calmness,” Cech told the Seaman Says podcast. “I remember when Wojciech Sczczesny went to Rome and he was with him there, and he said that he had this Brazilian guy on the bench who was so good and that everyone would know it. It didn’t take long.”
The former Chelsea and Arsenal stopper also went out of his way to praise Alisson’s showing at the World Cup so far.
“It’s nice to see when things go right and he’s had a big impact at Liverpool, and he’s been brilliant at the World Cup so far,” said Cech.
Is there a better goalkeeper on the planet right now?
Alisson gets perfect education in Rome
In retrospect, Alisson’s grounding in Europe at Roma was the absolute perfect springboard for him.
He wasn’t overly young when he joined the Italians. Twenty-three is no age for a ‘keeper, of course, but it isn’t like he was a teenager. Alisson had already even made his Brazil debut by the time he rocked up at Trigoria.
So, he was perfectly ready for the next step. Being immediately thrust into the limelight at such an intense club may have damaged that, though.
Instead, he was able to bide his time and learn from an already experienced goalkeeper in Szczesny. Although only two-and-a-half years older than Alisson, the Pole already had six years or so of top-level football behind him.
Having watched on and assimilated to the culture, Alisson exploded into life in 2017/18. After a brilliant campaign, Liverpool plucked him for £67m, just as he was coming into his peak.
Now rightly regarded as possibly the best ‘keeper in the game, Ali has gone from strength to strength. It would be a fitting accolade to see him lift the World Cup with Brazil later this month.
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