Enzo Maresca has confirmed the return of former captain Ben Chilwell into the first team squad. The former Leicester City fullback was exiled from the first team and was forced to train separately.
The Chelsea boss redlisted several other senior players, Chilwell was one of them. Players like Raheem Sterling, and Trevoh Chalobah managed to find a club. However, Ben Chilwell failed to find a suitor for him prompting him to stay at the Bridge.
To everyone’s surprise, the Italian manager has taken a U-turn in his decision. He included Chilwell in their Carabao cup clash against Barrow, giving him some playtime in the second half.
Yesterday the manager surprised everyone yet again by selecting the fullback in his 25-man squad against Brighton. Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, he says;
“Yes, in the moment we need him, why not? I said already many times and I will say again that, as long as Chilly is with us, he is a Chelsea player. And if we need him, we give him a chance and minutes.”
When he was asked whether axing Chilwell was a mistake, he says;
“We all make mistakes. Probably yes; probably no. I am here to take decisions. Sometimes they are good decisions and sometimes they are not good.”
“The only thing I can say is that there is not any bad intention from me. It is just to see things and try to think about the best things for the club.”
The manager’s words has reportedly provided much needed confidence to the England international.
Chelsea to offload Chilwell in January?
Ben Chilwell got the “cold storage” treatment at the start of the season. The England international received no offers during the summer window after he was banished from the first team by Maresca.
Brentford and Man United pulled out of the move, due to his recent injury record. Turkish clubs had the opportunity to get his services but a move failed to materialize in the final stages.
Now Chelsea will reportedly welcome January offers for Ben Chilwell, despite his recent return to the first team. Despite of him training with the first team squad now, his future at Stamford Bridge looks bleak. The defender was also left out of Chelsea’s Conference league squad indicating his negligible playtime at the club.
He has a contact with the club till 2027, but the club don’t value him anymore. His asking price hasn’t been set yet. The Mirror UK reports that the Englishman wants to stay at the Premier league and make his redemption.
The manager gave clarity to this situation speaking to the press conference. He says;
“Ben is one of the guys who was ready to leave, but he’s here and he’s training with us and training well.”
“He’s our player. The situation with him was very clear, but now the situation has changed a little bit. Game after game we are going to consider in case we are going to use him.”
The Blues’ defence holding team back
Chelsea are Ferrari while attacking but Maruti Alto while defending. They are leaking goals every game, in poor fashion. The game was chaotic and Chelsea capitalized on that. They were opened up on several occasions by Brighton. The Seagulls’ highline prompted the Blues’ to outfox them.
The manager set up a terrific game plan, but his defence let him down big time. Errors in the back led to the two goals being conceded. Poor positioning and poor marking, with lack of dominance in the midfield are some major concerns that the manager must address.
These flaws will affect the club big time, as their rivals Man City, Liverpool and Arsenal are almost flawless in their defence.
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