Chelsea are the unlucky sods stuck with the Friday night kick off this week, meaning the Blues have had a short time to prepare since Tuesday.
It’s an FA Cup game against lower league opposition, so we’re not expecting a full strength team from Liam Rosenior. The manager himself denied in his press conference that he would be rotating heavily, but we all know the truth. He would be mad to play some of his regulars today, given we can get the job done without them. The London is Blue podcast put it very plainly.
Chelsea must rotate and make the most of 8 day gap
Moises Caicedo in Fulham draw.
Moises Caicedo in Fulham draw. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
“Just rotate. That’s the only thing I really care about. You’ve got to figure out a way to get Enzo and Caicedo some time off. I don’t imagine Cole Palmer will play in this game,” presenter Nick Verlaney said.
“It’s a very unkind schedule, you’ve got a tight turnaround [after Tuesday night], but it does mean you have a little bit more time between this game and the next game, and if you can survive Hull you’ve got a full week until Burnley. A game you MUST win – you can’t drop points to 19th placed Burnley.”
Moises Caicedo has played 90 minutes 9 times and 70 minutes once since the start of January. It would be criminal if he sees the pitch today.
You can see them discussing the matter in the clip embedded here:
♻️ @nickverlaney on the lineup vs Hull: Just rotate. You got to figure out a way to get Enzo & Caicedo some time off. I don't imagine Cole Palmer playing this game. A very quick turnaround. It's a very unkind schedule.
🎧👉 https://t.co/UIAK6zD26v pic.twitter.com/Sci29UUuNF
— London Is Blue Podcast ⭐️⭐️ (@LondonBluePod) February 13, 2026
In other news…
Joao Pedro’s boom in form means he’s now the top rated player at the club for the season on some stats site – what a turnaround that has been.
One of our rising stars did an interview with the club’s website, and made a pretty wild choice as his footballing idol.
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