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Maresca voiced that his side is one big unit despite opting to field different lineups in the Premier League and in the UEFA Europa Conference League.
Cheslea boss Enzo Maresca. (AP Photo)
Chelsea are set to take on Armenian side Noah in the UEFA Europa Conference League on Thursday and head coach Enzo Maresca voiced that his side is one big unit despite opting to field different lineups in the Premier League and in Europe.
“We make changes because we have 24, 25 players, all fit, all good enough to play different competitions,” Maresca said.
“The season is so long, we have so many games. And for sure, all of them, they are going to play Conference League and Premier League games or FA Cup, the next one,” he added.
“So it’s not, I already said, I can understand that from outside, you can see two teams, but we have just one team, one squad, 24, 25 players, all fit, fortunately.
“And we’re going to try to use all of them,” the 44-year-old stated.
Maresca has been using Portuguese forward Joao Felix sparingly in recent games, but stated that it was a decision purely based on the balance of the team.
“I would like to give him more minutes in the Premier League. But I said many times we need a defensive balance, and we cannot play with Joao, Cole Palmer, and Christopher Nkunku,” the Italian said.
“I like to put all of them inside the pitch, but then you have to also defend, and you need the right balance,” he clarified.
“And this is the only reason why. But I don’t have any doubt that if Joao keeps working well, he’s going to find his moment also in the Premier League,” Maresca said.
Maresca also opined that the tag of favourites in the UECL makes things a bit more tricky, and opined that the Blues need to be wary of the challenge the Armenian side could throw at them.
“We need to be ready technically, but also mentally,” he said.
“Noah is a team that in their country, they play different shapes. So we don’t know how they’re going to come here and play,” he said.
“Today in football, you can find good players, good squads, good teams and good managers everywhere, not only in the most important leagues in Europe or in the world,” the Chelsea boss signed off.
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United Kingdom (UK)