Mike Penders can be Chelsea’s number one goalkeeper on the ball

It’s remarkable that Penders has become an expert with his feet since that was his weakness.

When Genk first scouted Penders from Sint-Jan Berchmans College for grassroots club Bregel Sport, his ability on the ball was his Achilles’ heel.

“A teacher recommended him to me,” Roeux, who recently left Zenk, added. “When I saw him, he had a great profile, he played well and he had a great mentality. But technically, he needed a lot of work.

“At the time, his legs were terrible because he was so tall. But he passed trials for our under-14s when he was 13.”

Roeux says he has “never seen a player improve so quickly between the ages of 13 and 18” because of Penders’ “unbelievable mentality” and his “inability to feel pressure” – qualities he insists are still evident today.

He added: “In the beginning he struggled a lot, but he worked very hard. We did footwork with our goalkeepers for at least 20 minutes every session.

“He reads the game very well, which is essential because playing from the back is not just about strategy, but decision-making – understanding space, pressure and timing.”

Almost 20 years after helping to develop the 6ft 7in Courtois with fellow Genk goalkeeper coach Guy Marten, Roux said Penders – who is the same height as Courtois – is similar to the former. Chelsea Goalkeeper, now a Real Madrid and Belgium great.

“Guy and I shared the same vision,” Roeux explained. “We believe football is changing and goalkeepers need to be comfortable on their feet. We have applied that philosophy throughout the academy, although initially there was some resistance from the coaches.

“Part of our vision came from Ajax and Johan Cruyff’s goalkeeping coach Frans Hoek. He was a visionary who later worked with Barcelona and the Dutch national team.

“We were also early on filming goalkeeping sessions using tape and simple editing software. We wanted to expose the under-16 goalkeepers to a first-team environment.

“We produced Courtois and Penders, but also Koen Castiles, Martin van der Voord at RB Leipzig, Kiaba Brugmans and Nordin Jakers, who are now at Club Brugge.”

Roeux believes that Penders’ calm demeanor comes from his close, stable family unit and growing up in the small village of Maasmechelen, just outside Genk.

“We have produced many great goalkeepers, but one with the ability to reach the same level as Mike Thibaut, his sense of calm is like gold in goalkeeping.”