Vaclik or Pavlenka. Who will be the national team’s number one at the EURO?

On Monday, the Czech footballers will play their first match at the European Championship against Scotland. The line-up is almost clear except for two positions, so the last piece of the puzzle is missing. Who will start at stopper and who will stand in goal.

Jaroslav Šilhavý will choose between Jiří Pavlenka and Tomáš Vaclík. It’s a pity that Ondrej Kolar, who could also have had a say in this selection, was not allowed to attend the tournament.

The experience from the national team and the confidence of the coach are clearly playing for Tomas Vaclik. For Šihavy, he was the clear number one during his tenure, he trusted him a lot all the time.

But the situation changed a bit after this season, when Vaclik played only 5 games in Seville. At the March World Cup qualification meeting Pavlenka caught the first game, but he couldn’t travel for the second game, so Vaclik caught the second game. But for the third game against Wales, they were both available again and Šilhavý pointed to Vaclik.

Jiri Pavlenka’s club record speaks for him, for the fourth year in a row he has played at least 34 games in the Bundesliga. The relegation of Werder Bremen may not have added to his psychological well-being, so he may well be looking for a new job. Vaclik, who ended up in Sevilla, is also waiting for that.

Both are more or less the same type of goalkeeper. They are excellent on the line, their reflexes and saves are first class. However, neither is a great friend with the ball, so constructive passing is not expected.

We saw that in the friendlies before the Euros. Against Albania, Vaclik had no claim on Cikallesh’s beautiful shot, can’t blame him. However, where there is a slight problem is his footwork. His attempts at crossing often went to waste, the ball left the field a couple of times.

However, when the goalkeeper can play the ball well, it is a huge help for the team when the opponent is pressing. Ondřej Kolář, who is the back-up for the Slavs, could tell us a lot about it. He is the one who is clearly the furthest away from the net of all three goalkeepers and it is a great pity that he was injured.

Before the Euro, however, Šilhavý has a choice of two candidates. Pavlenka was given a chance against Italy and he rather didn’t ask for another one, although he certainly can’t be blamed for all the opponents’ goals.

The management team will probably bet on Vaclik again, who is the national team’s number one after Petr Čech. We can only hope that Jaroslav Šilhavy and goalkeeper coaches Milan Veselý and Radek Černý will have a lucky hand.

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