Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has admitted that Jorrel Hato's initial progress at Stamford Bridge was a 'struggle'.
During the summer transfer window, the Blues paid in the region of £37m to secure a deal for the Ajax star on a long-term contract.
Sitting behind Marc Cucurella in the left-back pecking order, the 19-year-old was never realistically going to be thrust straight into first-team action.
However, he has reached this stage of the campaign with just three starts and two substitute outings to his name in all competitions.
Hato impressed as a substitute on his last appearance against Liverpool, playing a key role as Chelsea edged a thrilling game with the then-Premier League leaders, and he will now have an eye on facing his former club in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca in September 2025.
Maresca hints Hato has settled at Chelsea
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Maresca conceded that Hato's transition to life in England had not been seamless, yet he hinted that he was ready to play a more important role going forward.
The Italian said: "Yes, we are very happy with Jorrel since he arrived. He is trying to adapt a little bit to different competitions, English football, but we are very happy with him.
"The first two, three weeks he struggled a little bit in terms of physicality, in terms of intensity, but he is getting better and better."
When quizzed on whether the Netherlands international is better as a centre-back or left-back, Maresca added: "I think he can play both. He is a very good player.
"He can be a central defender or full-back, but also he can join a midfielder, attacking phases, so I think he can play different positions."
Chelsea's Marc Cucurella on March 9, 2025
Right time to start Hato and rest Cucurella?
With Sunderland to come on Saturday, Maresca will be tempted to heavily-rotate his squad for this fixture, including handing Hato his first Champions League start for the club.
Cucurella was rested for the second of Spain's two World Cup qualifiers during the international break, but he has still racked up 65 club appearances since the start of 2024-25 and featured heavily for his country.
Although Chelsea need to press on with accumulating points in the League Phase of the Champions League, players such as Hato need to continue their development in high-profile matches.
Furthermore, with the EFL Cup tie at Wolverhampton Wanderers next week, he theoretically has a chance to play 90 minutes on two occasions across a week-long period for the first time in a number of months.
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