Chelsea head into their match against Manchester United on Saturday with a depleted backline. Xabi Alonso confirmed on Friday that Maxence Lacroix is out for the match and won’t return until after the November international break. Although Cole Palmer is back from suspension and Moises Caicedo is fit, Jorrel Hato and Aaron Anselmino are both sidelined. Pep Chavarria, though, is back in contention.
That leaves Alonso with a settled back three and a few difficult choices in front of it. He should return to the 3-4-2-1 he’s used in the league and bring Palmer back into his best position.
Predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Penders; Colwill, Fofana, Acheampong; Neto, Caicedo, Henderson, Gusto; Palmer, Rogers; Welbeck
Mike Penders Starts
Emiliano Martinez is the obvious first choice in goal. He moved from Aston Villa for £7.5m and played five straight league games before breaking his jaw against Everton, where he kept his first clean sheet for the club. Alonso said on Friday that Martinez could return before the international break, but added that they’ll have to wait until next week.
Penders therefore starts and has more than earned it. He came on for the last 15 minutes at Everton to make his league debut in a 2-0 win, then had a rough first start against Tottenham, punching a corner into his own net. He answered that at Anfield with Chelsea’s best goalkeeping performance of the season.
Levi Colwill For Lacroix
Lacroix has been a regular in the backline, appearing in all 8 league games, starting seven of them and completing the full 90 minutes in each of his last four. His hamstring injury means that Chelsea have lost their most consistent defender.
Colwill came on for Lacroix at Anfield and scored his penalty in the shootout. He will play an organising role as vice-captain. There is no doubt there is pressure on the backline as they have let in 15 goals in the league and an average of 2 goals per game at Stamford Bridge.
Welbeck Should Start
Danny Welbeck simply hasn’t had a good season. All three of his Chelsea goals have come in the Carabao Cup, and he is still waiting for his first in the Premier League. He has failed to score or assist in 105 minutes, and he didn’t even take a shot in 71 minutes against Brentford.
However, Welbeck has a good history against Manchester United. He has scored six Premier League goals against them in the competition and eight against them in all competitions.
Estevao’s Situation
Estevao has only played 172 minutes in 8 games this season. He has started only twice and has contributed no goals. He didn’t play at all at Anfield. However, due to the cup exit and no European football, there aren’t as many minutes for the fringe players.
But there is an argument to play him for half an hour against a team in 16th and winless in their last 8 games.