Chelsea are back in action again on Tuesday night when they take on League One side Cardiff City in the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup.
On paper, Enzo Maresca’s side have been given the easiest tie of the round. They face the only non-Premier League side left in the competition.
The League One leaders will also be without Omari Kellyman, after the Blues decided to not allow their loanee to feature against his parent club.
Chelsea’s last game against Cardiff was back in 2019
Neil Warnock was left raging after Chelsea scored twice late on to win 2-1. Can you remeber who scored for the Blues?
Cardiff City v Chelsea FC - Premier League
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The Chelsea Chronicle have predicted they will rotate heavily for the change of competition. They will be just three days removed from the 2-0 win over Everton in the Premier League.
Wesley Fofana playing for Chelsea
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Wesley Fofana seems to confirm he won’t play during Chelsea vs Cardiff
This is likely to see two new centre-backs start, with Wesley Fofana one of those who impressed the most against the Toffees.
He has very rarely been featuring in consecutive games though, and has told The Sun that the plan right now is to only play one game a week, essentially ruling him out of Tuesday’s game.
He said: “It has been a hard month, and it’s not finished because we have games coming every two or three days. We are trying to give everything. The manager and the staff have managed the team well, which is a bit new for everyone, but everyone is focused.
“The most important thing is to keep the guys fit and to try to win games. The rotation is good, I talk a lot with the manager. The programme we set for now is just to play one game per week, but the team feels good.
“The manager chooses his 11, the guys on the bench are focused, and we’re all together.”
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Maresca is making the right decision with Wesley Fofana
Maresca has claimed that Fofana is part of his best centre-back duo alongside Trevoh Chalobah, however this pairing is only possible if he is fit.
Finish off our team to face Cardiff!
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Injuries have been a massive problem for the Frenchman since he joined the club, however he is finally starting to put together a number of weeks in a row without suffering any issue.
Fofana was in November’s Premier League Team of the Month due to his excellent performances, and it is certainly a risk in a quarter-final to not feature their strongest defender.
However, the manager is making the right call to prioritise his long-term fitness, and instead there will be pressure on the likes of Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile to deal with the League One side this week.
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