Liam Rosenior has picked a brave starting eleven for the Chelsea’s Premier League game against Manchester City at Stamford Bridge this Sunday afternoon. The sixth-placed hosts are desperate to stop a worrying slide that has given them only five points from the last 18 available, with their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League hanging by a thread.
Robert Sanchez is still in goal, and Malo Gusto and Marc Cucurella are playing full-back, while captain Reece James is injured. Wesley Fofana plays centre-back with Jorrel Hato, so Tosin Adarabioyo is on the bench for this game. Moises Caicedo is the captain of the team and plays in the middle with Andrey Santos.
Estevao, Cole Palmer, and Pedro Neto help out creatively behind lone striker Joao Pedro. Enzo Fernandez is not there at all because Rosenior dropped him after he made controversial comments about his future at Stamford Bridge.
Rosenior Insists Chelsea Can Win Despite Fernandez Suspension
The former Strasbourg coach confirmed on Friday that Fernandez would not be playing, but he remained defiant about his team’s ability to upset the visitors, who are chasing the title. Rosenior talked about the Argentine’s situation in his usual straightforward way:
“He’s apologised to me, he’s apologised to the club. He won’t play on Sunday but hopefully after that he’ll be a massive part of the group moving forward.”
The 41-year-old also said that not playing his star midfielder was not a way to hurt his own chances in such an important game:
“Football is a team sport, it’s not about individuals. It’s not about shooting yourself in the foot. There are certain values and cultures that I believe in, that this club believes in, that makes the team stronger if you get that right.”
Rosenior has reasons to be cautiously hopeful going into this game. Levi Colwill is back in full training after a long-term knee injury, but he won’t be able to play this weekend. Meanwhile, City are nine points behind leaders Arsenal as they travel to west London. They can’t afford to lose any more points in their quest for the title. Chelsea, on the other hand, are trying to bounce back from a humiliating 3-0 loss to Everton and keep their hopes of finishing in the top five alive with seven league games left this season.