Liam Rosenior utilised his entire squad well as Chelsea booked their place in the Champions League Round of 16 with a 3-2 victory over Napoli.
Rosenior admitted he got things wrong by starting just one centre-back in the side, however addressed this when they trailed at the break.
Their performance was also buoyed by the impact of Cole Palmer off the bench. The England international recorded both assists for Joao Pedro’s stunning second-half brace.
Trevoh Chalobah, Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens also came off the bench to make an impact, with the latter being replaced in the final moments by Benoit Badiashile to deal with Romelu Lukaku.
SSC Napoli v Chelsea FC - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD8
Photo by Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The Argentine put in a tidy cameo off the bench, however was almost the architect of Chelsea’s downfall when he was caught in possession around his own penalty area.
TuttoMercatoWeb stated in their ratings for the game that before joining Chelsea, Garnacho could well have made a move to be an attacker for Napoli instead.
After giving him a 6/10 rating, they said: “Cameo at the Maradona, without being noticed in the stadium that could have been his.”
The Blues pushed hard throughout the summer transfer window to sign the Argentine from Manchester United, and are currently benefitting from that decision.
He has six goals and three assists in all competitions this season, and has far exceeded what Gittens has done so far this season.
Joao Pedro star of the show vs Napoli
Antonio Conte was quick to praise Pedro after the game. The Brazilian put his best performance in since the Club World Cup.
In the battle with Liam Delap for minutes up front, the former Brighton man is clearly winning that war so far.
It is clear that he has also shown something to the new manager too, with Liam Rosenior having plenty of conversations with Pedro already since coming in.
Pedro will almost certainly be in the starting side at the weekend to face West Ham, although rotation could also open the door for Garnacho to be named in the XI too.
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