It remains unknown whether or not new signing Mads Hermansen will start on Saturday or if he will remain loyal to Areola. 

One of Graham Potter’s main goals this summer was to sign a new goalkeeper, a number one that was better with the ball at his feet so he could fit into the style of football better than Areola can.

At long last we finally secured the signing of Danish goalkeeper Mads Hermansen for a bargain price of £18m including any future add-ons. While this is a great deal after originally being quoted £30m, it took a lot of time to get the deal done, so he hasn’t had any pre-season with the team.

While fitness isn’t going to be an issue for Hermansen, to throw him in after just a week of training and no games played in the system could be a risk, and it would also be a dagger to the heart of Alphonse Areola.

While football is a ruthless game, and it’s best to do what’s best for the team, but dropping Areola before he’s even had a chance to prove what he can do in the League could cause a bit of upset in what has become a very happy dressing room.

However, we know how poor Areola is with is feet and that’s very important to our style of play, we want to start the new season with as little of the problems with had last season as possible, and to do that dropping Areola makes complete sense. So, hopefully Mads Hermansen starts between the sticks at the Stadium of Light on Saturday afternoon.