A number of Chelsea players didn’t take their chance to impress at the weekend despite their FA Cup win against Wrexham, and Wayne Rooney doesn’t agree with the amount of rotation they undertook for that game.
The Blues relied on the impact of Joao Pedro off the bench against the Championship side, after they were second best for most of the game.
Liam Delap and Tosin Adarabioyo were among those who struggled greatly on Saturday, with Rooney criticising Delap during punditry coverage for the game.
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Chelsea player ratings vs Wrexham with Joao Pedro clapping the fans
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Wayne Rooney criticises Chelsea’s rotation against Wrexham in FA Cup
He has also claimed on ‘The Wayne Rooney Show‘ that he didn’t agree with the rotation Liam Rosenior made to his side, even though they are looking ahead to bigger and better things.
He said: “Yeah, again, I just don’t think in the FA Cup, I know they’ve got Champions League midweek and they’ve got a lot of players, but the quality of players they play, they should be winning that game.
Wrexham v Chelsea - Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round
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“But I still don’t agree with the amount of changes which teams, not just Chelsea, but teams are making in the FA Cup.
“And I thought they’d done really well to get through that tie because Wrexham were at it, the fans were at it. And I’ve been there, I’ve played in games like that where it was very difficult to get through them that tie. But for them to get through it, I’m sure will be a big relief.”
The Blues knew they would have just three days to recover from this game before their trip to PSG in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16.
This was likely behind the reason by Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer were nowhere to be seen in the matchday squad in Wales on Saturday.
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It has been a clear strategy for Chelsea to have a deep squad, with two players competing for each position on the pitch.
In theory, this should allow them the opportunity to rotate heavily for games like this one in the FA Cup, and not feel as if they are going in with a far weaker side.
In other circumstances, this may become the case. Delap is woefully out of form right now, and Romeo Lavia looked rusty in his first start since early November.
Given the fact they have been blessed with a quarter-final draw against Port Vale at Stamford Bridge, expect more changes at the start of next month due to the aggressive schedule the players are facing.
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