Now World ViewEnzo Maresca set for Chelsea unknown as Conference League reality becomes clear
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The next few weeks are crucial for Enzo Maresca and Chelsea, with eyes on both Europe and the Premier League.
Following January and February, when there wasn’t too much midweek action to contend with, the return of the Europa Conference League means the return of the three-day turnaround between matches.
It all starts again for Chelsea on Thursday evening when they travel to Denmark to take on Copenhagen in the first leg of their round of 16 tie. The second leg takes place at Stamford Bridge a week later.
In between the two ties, Chelsea host Leicester City on Sunday afternoon (2pm kick-off). The game will see Maresca as well as midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall come up against their former club for just the second time since leaving in the summer.
Earlier in the season, Maresca was able to call on somewhat of a second team for Europa Conference League matches. Players such as Joao Felix, Axel Disasi and Christopher Nkunku would come in for the midweek European matches, giving the majority of Premier League starters time to prepare for the next league encounter.
Cole Palmer was even left out of the Conference League squad entirely for the league stage but has been added to the squad and will be available for selection in the knockout phase.
Whether he will start against Copenhagen is still to be seen, with Maresca facing a decision with one eye on the Premier League clash against Leicester just three days later.
Unlike the group phase, both January sales and injuries mean that the Italian won’t have so much of a luxury of being able to name a completely changed team. That is unless he turns to some of the club’s youngsters, which would be a huge risk in knockout games.
Cesare Casadei, Felix, Disasi and Veiga were all called upon in the group stage but were allowed to leave on either temporary or permanent deals in January. A suspension for Mykhailo Mudryk and an injury to Marc Guiu rule them out, while others such as Nkunku, Tosin Adarabioyo and Enzo Fernandez have become regulars in the Premier League line-up due to injuries in the squad.
It means that options for Maresca are dwindling, especially compared to just a few months ago. It leaves the Chelsea boss with a decision to make: does he continue to make changes but risk making it a difficult second leg against Copenhagen, or does he go full-strength, which could impact the weekend’s Premier League clash?
The Blues currently sit in fifth place in the league, two points clear of Newcastle United and the chasing pack. They have, however, lost three of their last five league games.
A win against Leicester could see them start to turn their form around and strengthen their grip on a Champions League place. Anything other than that could lead to more questions being asked.
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- Enzo Maresca
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