Marcus Bettinelli has spent the first half of this season adjusting and settling into life at Cobham. The goalkeeper made the switch across south-west London from Fulham in the summer, filling the gloves of the departing Willy Caballero as understudy to Edouard Mendy and Kepa Arrizabalaga.

The role of third goalkeeper is fairly unique in football and Bettinelli accepted from day one that opportunities for playing time may be limited at Stamford Bridge. Yet that hasn’t dampened his thirst for improvement and now, with Mendy away at the Africa Cup of Nations, there is a chance for the Londoner to step up once again.

‘It’s been great,’ he said when reflecting on the start of his Chelsea career. ‘Edou and Kepa are two top-class goalkeepers. I knew that before I arrived but when you work with them every day, you see the effort and commitment that they both put in and you realise then just how good they are.

‘We’ve got a good goalie group with Hilario and James Russell [the goalkeeping coaches], who are top people to work with. They push you every day and they’ve put a lot of time and effort into improving me over the last five months.

‘Of course, I always knew what my role would be but Hilario made it clear when I signed that he wants me to improve and they’ve certainly helped me do that.’

Playing games is often considered the default way to develop through experience and Bettinelli certainly did that last term, with 41 appearances in the Championship on loan at Middlesbrough. Yet there is also something to be said from learning alongside the best and he has seen a different side to the art of goalkeeping during his five months at Cobham.

‘Hilario is unbelievable at cutting clips from training and showing you where you’ve improved ever so slightly in goalkeeping terms, stuff that the outfielders or people watching might not see,’ he explained. ‘He goes into real detail; him and James are brilliant at that.

‘They work and work on it. It’s not a case of if something doesn’t work the first time then we give up and try something else. We work hard and we stick to our guns. I’ve learnt a lot.

‘I’ve approached goalkeeping in a completely different way to what I have done in the past because of their philosophy so that’s been great to try new things. At the start, I found it very tough because it was completely different but now I would say I’m very used to it and understand what’s coming.’

Bettinelli, more than most, knows what’s coming this evening as well. The 29-year-old spent most of the 2012/13 campaign on loan in tier five of the English pyramid, cutting his teeth at newly-promoted and forward-thinking Dartford in his first experience of life in senior football having come through the ranks at Fulham’s academy.

Non-league football has changed significantly over the decade since but he recalls it being a key moment in his young career and one that has shaped his journey in the game since.

‘It was an important experience for me, probably one of the best moves I ever made,’ he reflects. ‘Going on loan, you learn tenfold what you can in academy football at that age and I learnt the most in those first couple of years on loan and during that time at Dartford.

‘You get to learn the trade and see a different style of football. You have to come and really fight to claim the ball at corners, scream and shout. It’s a different game and it definitely put me in good stead for my future career.

‘The set-up at Dartford was actually really good. I was expecting to go there and I’d have to bring my own kit and wash my own stuff but it was very organised, probably better than when I was in League Two. The team was part-time so a lot of the boys had jobs during the day and would come straight from there if we were playing in the evening. It was a great club for me, a forward-thinking club at the time and the changing room was great. I’m still friends with some of them now.

‘I have a lot of good memories and a lot of “first times”, like my first clean sheet and first game on TV. I think my mum still has that recorded on the Sky box somewhere so they were good times.’

Bettinelli’s first taste of the FA Cup didn’t come until the following season on loan at Accrington Stanley and he has made nine appearances in the famous old competition in total, experiencing ties as both unfancied outsiders and strong favourites.

‘It’s always special,’ he states. ‘Any time you get to play in a knockout game, it’s always tough and I’ve seen both sides of it as a massive underdog playing against some big teams and also playing for a team that should beat someone at home.

‘The FA Cup always seems to bring a surprise every single year and that’s why people always talk about the magic of the cup. Anything can happen because it’s a special competition with a great history.’

With Mendy away and Kepa facing four other big games over the coming fortnight, there is a chance that Thomas Tuchel and his goalkeeping staff may opt to hand Bettinelli his Blues debut this evening. Whether that comes or not remains to be seen but the man who has quickly become a popular figure among the squad is ready for whatever role is asked of him.

‘Whatever team the gaffer decides to put out, it’s not going to be easy,’ he added. ‘Chesterfield are going to be right up for it, very excited and pumped up so we’ll need to match that with intensity, not get dragged into what they’re doing and just play our football. Mentality is the main thing; approaching the game with a winning mentality and an aggression as we would do any other game.

‘Like I said when I joined in the summer, I’m ready for whatever is asked of me. It would be amazing to get the opportunity to represent this club, especially in the FA Cup, but I’ll be doing my job regardless of selection.

‘Whatever’s happened this season, I’ve always tried to be involved and use my voice as a weapon and an attribute with the lads in the changing room so that won’t change.’