Chelsea: Enzo Maresca explains Enzo Fernandez omission amid exciting hint over attacking revamp

Enzo Maresca has explained wherefore club-record signing Enzo Fernandez is nary longer successful his first-choice team, suggesting that Chelsea’s midfield lacks “physicality” erstwhile the Argentine plays.

Fernandez signed for Chelsea from Benfica successful January 2023 for a British-record transportation interest of £106.8million, soon aft starring successful Argentina’s World Cup triumph successful Qatar.

The midfielder started six of Chelsea’s archetypal 7 Premier League matches nether Maresca, missing lone September’s triumph astatine Bournemouth done illness.

However, helium was dropped for the travel to Liverpool earlier this period and Maresca appears to person settled connected the pairing of Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo astatine the basal of midfield up of Sunday’s gathering with Manchester United.

“First of all, it’s a substance of balance,” Maresca explained. “In this moment, Romeo and Moises springiness america physicality, spot successful the middle.

“Otherwise, erstwhile we play with Enzo, it has to beryllium Enzo with 1 of Moises and Romeo. Then, erstwhile Enzo moves [forward], we conflict a spot successful the mediate successful presumption of physicality. It is thing that astatine the moment, Moises and Romeo springiness us.”

Despite his hefty transportation interest and lofty estimation arsenic 1 of Europe’s brightest midfield talents, Fernandez’s Chelsea vocation is inactive yet to genuinely instrumentality off.

“For Enzo, it is precise simple,” Maresca added. “He is not playing successful this moment, but we person truthful galore games and helium is going to play for definite successful the future. Now, he’s not playing.

“It doesn’t mean he’s not going to play successful 2 days and it doesn’t mean that Romeo and Moises are ever going to play. In the infinitesimal that 1 of them drop, we tin alteration it.”

Maresca has tended to play a 4-2-3-1 enactment passim his Chelsea reign truthful far, with Cole Palmer operating arsenic a No10 up of a midfield pair.

However, Joao Felix has been successful bully signifier deputising successful that relation successful some the Carabao Cup and Conference League fixtures and Maresca offered a tantalising hint that helium could soon shingle up his squad to accommodate some players.

“It doesn’t mean successful 1 crippled we cannot play with Cole and Joao successful the pocket,” helium said. “It depends connected the game.

“Probably soon we are going to spot Joao and Cole unneurotic successful the pouch with a striker. It’s ever the crippled that requires a antithetic plan.”