Chelsea came crashing back down to earth on Wednesday night after staggering to a 2-2 draw against Qarabag in Europe, highlighting the inconsistencies that have frustrated Enzo Maresca since taking over.
The west Londoners face a tough battle to secure an all-important spot in the top eight of the Champions League group standings, with tricky ties against Barcelona and Italian champions Napoli to come.
Maresca has been desperate to utilise his expensively-assembled squad this season, but has been forced to contend with injuries to key players including Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Liam Delap – a knock-on effect from their exertions at last summer’s Club World Cup.
To add more misery to the Blues boss, young midfielder Romeo Lavia was forced off with an injury during Wednesday night’s draw in Azerbaijan. It has been a miserable time in London for the Belgian, who has picked up no fewer than 10 injuries during his stint at Stamford Bridge.
In real terms, that’s led to 495 days out injured, 77 matches missed, and just 29 minutes for Chelsea. The brutal reality is that he has spent more time injured than healthy.
Maresca has attributed his side’s terrible injury record to their exploits in the United States this summer, where they triumphed in the inaugural Club World Cup, meaning they struggled to adequately prepare for the new season.
Enzo Maresca has bemoaned the Club World Cup’s effect on his fatigued Chelsea squad
The Blues boss has changed half his team every game, leading to inconsistent results
‘The Club World Cup affects a lot,’ he said after Wednesday’s draw. ‘We try to rotate. When you win, no one mentions all that. When we don’t win, everyone is focused on that, and now I think it’s important to recover energy for Saturday and go again.’
It’s been a mixed start to the season for the Blues. Statement victories over Liverpool and Spurs have been interspersed with dismal defeats by Man United, Brighton and newly promoted Sunderland, seeing Maresca’s side languishing in seventh position.
The Italian’s constant tinkering – he’s made no fewer than 85 total starting lineup changes this season – has proved to be a double-edged sword for the boss. While he’s managed to keep injury-prone stars like Reece James and Pedro Neto fit by shuffling his pack, rotation may be a key factor behind the team’s struggle to find sustained runs of consistency.
The foundation of any successful team can be found in a settled back line. While Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has made 67 changes to his starting lineups and boasts impressive strength in depth at centre back, he rarely rotates his go-to duo of William Saliba and Gabriel.
Even Pep Guardiola, who has been the source of frustration for many Fantasy Premier League managers with his regular first XI changes, has settled for Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol at centre back.
Other contenders have shuffled their squad – not to the extent of Chelsea – but can still produce positive results and performances
It can be no coincidence, then, that the young defenders Maresca has turned to when rotating his squad have been prone to errors. In Azerbaijan, £37million new boy Jarrel Hato made two key errors leading to the underdogs’ goals, while Trevoh Chalobah was at fault for Sunderland’s winning goal at Stamford Bridge.
At the other end of the XI changes table, Sunderland have rarely made tweaks to their starting lineups this season. Blessed with a kinder calendar where they rarely have to play three times a week, the Black Cats have made just 32 changes to their team week on week.
For the frontrunners – Arsenal, Man City and reigning champions Liverpool – they have a remarkably similar number of changes to their XI: 67, 64 and 69 respectively.
As Maresca aims to reach the levels of the three leaders, there are lessons to be learnt for the Blues boss if he is to make his squad last the season – while picking up results.
