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Chelsea are fully supportive of Enzo Maresca’s recruitment and rotation strategy and had no issue with the head coach making seven changes for Wednesday’s 2-2 Champions League draw with Qarabag.
Although the result left Maresca facing questions over his starting XI, the Italian left Baku knowing he retains the firm backing of Chelsea’s leadership.
The Premier League club have amassed a deep, talented squad to compete in four major competitions and feel that regular game time is the only way to keep players fresh during a long and draining season. It is understood there is no sense within Chelsea that Maresca gambled with his selection against Qarabag, rather that the he has implemented a smart policy during the past two seasons that will aid player availability in the long run.
Chelsea, who have changed their starting XI more than any other Premier League side this season, did not have a proper pre-season after going all the way at last summer’s Club World Cup and have been hit by injuries to key players. Pedro Neto, Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill and Benoît Badiashile were unavailable against Qarabag and Maresca has said that Moisés Caicedo, Enzo Fernández and João Pedro have been playing with knocks.
Maresca looked to manage his team’s workload by starting Caicedo and Fernández on the bench against Qarabag. The plan had to be scotched when Roméo Lavia was forced off with a thigh injury in the eighth minute. Caicedo was introduced and will be expected to start again when Chelsea, who flew back to London in the early hours of Thursday morning, host Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday.
The 5,000-mile round trip to Azerbaijan presented complications for Chelsea. They arrived in Baku in the early hours of Wednesday morning and decided to stay on UK time because of the quick turnaround. However, there was no suggestion that the world champions did not take Qarabag seriously. Maresca had experience with Marc Cucurella and Reece James in the full-back positions, João Pedro lasting 71 minutes at No 10 and Robert Sánchez in goal.
It became a difficult night for certain squad players. Jorrel Hato, the 19-year-old centre-back, had a poor game and Maresca removed the young, inexperienced trio of Andrey Santos, Tyrique George and Jamie Gittens at half-time.
However, there is a recognition at Chelsea that their more inexperienced players will only adapt to Maresca’s demands if they are given regular opportunities. Gittens and Hato joined last summer and Santos, who arrived in January 2023, is in his first season as a first-team squad regular.
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Maresca works closely with Chelsea’s five sporting directors on how to manage a tight schedule and is in alignment with them on the rotation policy. Indeed it would count against Maresca were he to chase short-term results by compromising the fitness of key players. The club’s strategy is to stay patient both in victory and defeat. His rotation will not alter that view.
Such rotation aims to ensure players can perform at peak level at crucial moments. Maresca’s careful management of James has kept the captain injury-free for a long period. Maresca is trying to work in a similar way with Wesley Fofana and Lavia.
Results have been mixed for Maresca, who is managing in the Champions League for the first time, when he rings the changes. Chelsea drew with Brentford when they rested players before visiting Bayern Munich in September. Equally they beat Ajax, Lincoln and Wolves after playing weakened sides.
