According to Paul Merson, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca should bench the player against Sunderland who excelled in midweek.
The Blues are currently preparing to host Sunderland on Saturday afternoon in the Premier League, where they are aiming to extend their four-game winning streak across all competitions.
On Wednesday night, Chelsea cruised to a Champions League win against Ajax, thrashing them 5-1 at Stamford Bridge. It was extra impressive because Enzo Maresca made 10 changes to his team for the European fixture.
Maresca, who’s under contract until 2029, continues to get a lot of things right. His side still have plenty of work to do in the Premier League, though.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca in a training session at Cobham.
Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images
Paul Merson thinks Chelsea should bench Jamie Gittens
Paul Merson doesn’t think there should be room for Chelsea winger Jamie Gittens in the starting line-up against Sunderland this weekend. Even though he thought the 21-year-old Englishman shone at home to Ajax, he’s suggested a different front three.
Merson told Sportskeeda: “Chelsea should start Estevao, Joao Pedro and Pedro Neto as their front-three against Sunderland. Jamie Gittens had his best game in a Chelsea shirt against Ajax but I just think Neto should be first-choice down that flank.”
It has been a bit of a slow start from Gittens since he joined from Borussia Dortmund in the summer, but he was fantastic in his previous appearance. Afterwards, Dutch media even praised Gittens, claiming Ajax couldn’t deal with his attacking threat.
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The reality is he’s competing with Alejandro Garnacho for the starting position on the left wing. Versatile wide man Pedro Neto can play there, too.
Chelsea supporters want Gittens to start against Sunderland as a reward for his European display, so all eyes will be on Maresca to see what he does.
Jamie Gittens playing for Chelsea against Ajax in the Champions League.
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Enzo Maresca’s dilemma in attack
Unlike Merson, we would like to see Marc Guiu lead the line as the centre-forward and have Joao Pedro a bit deeper in the number 10 role. This means that two players can be selected from Gittens, Neto, or Estevao Willian to start in the wide areas.
It is a positive that Maresca has tough decisions to make right now because there are several individuals pushing to start.
In the long term, it would make sense to establish a hierarchy in the forward positions because the constant changing could eventually backfire. Let’s remember that Cole Palmer is scheduled to return at the end of next month, too.