Favourite: Reggie Walsh
Chelsea Football Newsletter
The Italian handed Walsh his first-team debut last season in a Conference League semi-final meeting with Djurgardens.
He signed as a Chelsea scholar over the summer, but is yet to appear in a first-team matchday squad this season.
Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League visit to Brentford, Maresca explained that his natural understanding of the game is what sets the youngster apart.
“I like all the academy guys but Reggie is the one I like more than the rest,” he said.
“I like Reggie because he is doing things that I’m demanding to the other players, but he is doing those things without me asking him to do that.
“I don’t need to ask him to do something. What he’s doing is already what I want from that player.”
Maresca continued, adding that Shumaira ‘Shim’ Mheuka and Ryan Kavuma-McQueen could also appear for the first team this season.
Mheuka, 17, has impressed in Premier League 2 for Chelsea this season, scoring a hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Manchester City in August. Kavuma-McQueen, 16, starred for England’s Under-17 outfit during the September international break, hitting four goals in a 7-5 win over Germany.
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“They are in my plans, for sure,” Maresca went on.
“The other one (Kavuma-McQueen) for me is more of a winger.
“He scored four goals against Germany. I even watched that game. I was very impressed, but I already knew him.
“We always have one of my staff watching the second team (Under-21s) since last year.
“They told me that this guy was very good so I watched him. I think he’s good.”