Chelsea could not have planned for Emi Martinez to be clobbered in the jaw and taken to hospital, but one thing they have been preparing for is their long-term future in the goalkeeping position.
Penders only turned 21 in July and has already in his short career shown himself to be an early starter and a fast learner. He is also a product of the Genk academy, and that counts for a great deal more than some may realise.
The Belgian club have gained a reputation for producing excellent goalkeepers wanted right across Europe - most notably Real Madrid’s Thibaut Courtois but also RB Leipzig’s Maarten Vandevoordt, Liverpool’s £30million summer signing Lucca Brughmans, and of course Penders himself.
Their talent factory owes much to goalkeeping coach Guy Martens, who has been at the club since 1991. Martens and Genk have developed a revolutionary way of ensuring a prized production line of goalkeepers - a methodology that involves the Belgian club never recruiting goalkeepers for age groups below 12.
Instead, all outfield players take a turn between the sticks up to that age, before the most promising are then taken for further training with Martens and his coaches.
Here, they begin to follow a goalkeeper-specialised route through the Genk academy. One thing this produces is goalkeepers with experience out-field and thus outstanding distribution.
Getting his chance: Mike Penders will start for Chelsea while Emi Martinez is sidelined
PA
It produces goalkeepers likely to boast a greater ability to play out from the back, who offer themselves as a passing lane, and who not only spot the right pass but also possess the technique to pull it off.
Penders arrived at Genk from Bregel Sport aged 13, though, and his kicking required more than a little work, according to Martens, who described his feet as “like an elephant’s”.
Not anymore. The intervening years spent in Belgium's goalkeeper factory with Martens and his staff have seen Penders emerge as one of the most exciting goalkeepers in Europe.
That prompted Chelsea to sign him on a pre-agreement in August 2024. When he did then arrive in the summer of 2025, he was soon shipped off to sister club Strasbourg, where he shone last season as one of Ligue 1’s best shot-stoppers and kept eight clean sheets in 33 league games.
He has personality, is brave, and we have full trust in him. Whenever he is needed, he can perform
Xabi Alonso on Mike Penders
Now he is tasked with filling in for the vastly experienced Martinez while the Argentine is sidelined, but he has the trust of Chelsea’s manager and his coaching staff, who back him to earn his stripes.
Of the cameo Penders delivered at Everton that lasted 15 minutes plus a healthy chunk of injury time, Alonso said: “He did well. You could see what Mike is [all] about. He has personality, is brave, and we have full trust in him. Whenever he is needed, he can perform.”
That courage in darting off his line to punch and claim crosses, and to instruct the Chelsea players where to stand for the free-kick that brought Pedro Neto’s second goal, was clear to see even in the short time he had to impress at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, and will be required once more when Tottenham come to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
And beyond him Chelsea have Teddy Sharman-Lowe, a highly-regarded former England youth international who is now only one injury away from his first senior involvement with Chelsea.
He is a shot-stopper with enough recent first-team experience with Doncaster and Bolton to play back-up to Penders until Martinez returns.
More than anything, though, this next period - however long it lasts - presents Penders with just the sort of opportunity he has been waiting for. A key figure in Chelsea’s future is to play a vital role in their here and now.