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Chelsea are on the travels in the Europa Conference League on Thursday, December 12th, as they face Astana at the Ortalyq Stadion in Kazakhstan. The Blues have a 100% record in the competition having won all four matches so far and will look to take another step towards qualification into the knockout stage in their 15:30 UK time kick-off.
Enzo Maresca is likely to make a number of rotations, as he has done on the continental stage, but with the wind under their sails, they should be considerable favourites to beat their next opponents.
Here is how the Blues might line up for the game.
Goalkeeper – Filip Jorgensen has featured for the team in the Conference League and may replace Robert Sanchez against Astana.
Defenders – Malo Gusto could come in at right back, while Marc Cucurella might be replaced by Renato Veiga on the left. The central defenders are also likely to be rotated with Axel Disasi and Tosin Adarabioyo potentially coming in.
Joao Felix to start
Midfielders – The double pivot of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo could be rested too, so Romero Lavia may feature in the role alongside Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. Cesare Casadei is suspended after receiving a red card against Heidenheim last time.
Noni Madueke could return to the right wing after coming off the bench in Chelsea’s win against Tottenham at the weekend, whereas £45 million forward Joao Felix might replace Jadon Sancho on the left wing. Christopher Nkunku could play as the number 10.
Forward – Marc Guiu has had his fair share of minutes in the Conference League and may be thrown into the thick of the action on a cold evening in Kazakhstan. It will be interesting to see how the former Barcelona player does with more regular game time under his belt having shown glimpses of his quality over his last few appearances for Chelsea.
This is how the Londoners might look on paper: