Pedro Neto has praised Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall after Chelsea's Conference League victory over FC Astana. The midfielder played the full 90 minutes in Kazakhstan picked up an assist as the Blues made it five wins from five with a 3-1 triumph.
With the European clash played in freezing conditions, Enzo Maresca expressed his joy at the performance from his players. "We knew it was quite cold," he said. "We tried to adapt. The players did fantastic with the weather conditions, the long flight and the pitch was probably not ideal for us. But overall I'm very happy for the players."
One of those to feature was Dewsbury-Hall as he completed 90 minutes for only the sixth time this season. Since his £30million summer move from Leicester, he has struggled for regular minutes with only 14 appearances to his name in all competitions and just 55 minutes of Premier League action.
Because of that, talk of a January loan has arisen with the Foxes as a potential option. Having worked with him closely at King Power Stadium, Maresca made Dewsbury-Hall one of his first signings, though the 26-year-old has thus far struggled to adapt to life at Stamford Bridge.
Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez and Romeo Lavia are all above him in the pecking order with the trio currently performing at a very high level. Despite that, Dewsbury-Hall is still quite clearly working very hard and has the backing of his teammates.
On Instagram, Dewsbury-Hall made a post after the game where he wrote: "+3 in -12. [cold face emoji]." Neto, who also started the clash and picked up an assist, was quickly in the replies as he said, "Veryyyyyy good [cold and heart eyes emoji.]"
Pedro Neto sent a message to Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Pedro Neto sent a message to Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (Image: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall on Instagram)
With Chelsea out of the Carabao Cup and only one European group game remaining, minutes over the next few months for Dewsbury-Hall could be hard to come by.
In January, Chelsea do take on League Two side Morecambe in the FA Cup which will likely be a chance for the Englishman to feature, assuming he is still at the club. A few injury problems in midfield could see him be utilised in league action however, and therefore it is more likely he remains in West London for the time being.