Speaking to the press after a third straight Premier League win, Enzo Maresca discussed a Chelsea decision that he doesn’t plan on making again.
It was all smiles from Maresca after the win over Burnley.
Chelsea were good value for the 2-0 scoreline, though it wasn’t a straightforward outing for the Blues.
Who was your player of the match vs Burnley?
Maresca made an interesting half-time decision, taking off Reece James. That call was made with one eye looking ahead to Barcelona on Tuesday.
But that wasn’t the only call the Chelsea boss made with upcoming games in mind.
Burnley v Chelsea - Premier League
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Enzo Maresca didn’t play Moises Caicedo in Premier League first
Maresca oversaw his 50th Premier League game as Chelsea manager, and his players marked it with the win.
In those previous 49, Moises Caicedo played some or all of the minutes. Today, he was left on the bench, but it’s not something he wants to have to do again.
READ MORE:Why Moises Caicedo is now the Premier League’s most complete player ahead of Reece James
As Football London report, Maresca was asked about the importance of Caicedo after mentioning that 49-game streak.
He responded: “I won’t do it anymore, it’s the last time.”
The comments are a cheerful nod to Caicedo’s quality, and not meant in any way to take away from the performance of his stand-in.
Enzo Maresca delighted with Andrey Santos’ Burnley performance
It’s clear Maresca sees Caicedo as indispensable, but Andrey Santos came in and put on a Player of the Match performance.
Maresca was very pleased with what he saw from the Brazilian, saying: “Yeah, it was very good. Andrey’s position is the position that he played today. With us, most of the time, he plays a little bit higher, a little bit in the pocket, but it’s because in that position we have Moises.
“So we try to find solutions, space for Andrey, but we are aware and we know that Andrey’s position is the position that he played today. It was very good.”
Maybe not that encouraging to hear that Santos is competing with a player who has to play every game, but very encouraging that he took his opportunity and ran with it.