Maresca stands by team selection after Chelsea’s derby draw

Enzo Maresca stood by his decision to make changes to his Chelsea side for the 2-2 draw with Brentford.

Head coach Maresca handed a start to Wesley Fofana as well as summer signings Jorrel Hato and Facundo Buounanotte, and Chelsea struggled to make much of an impression in the first half of the game.

All three were replaced at half-time, with regular starters Reece James and Marc Cucurella coming on alongside Tyrique George, and the Blues only found a way back into the game once Cole Palmer was introduced just before the hour mark.

However, Maresca explained that a busy upcoming schedule, including a trip to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday, influenced his team selection.

He said: “We planned 45 minutes for Wes because he was out for a long time [injured].

“We planned for Jorrel to not play the whole game because when you come from another country you need time to adapt.

“Facundo joined us two weeks ago, [his] physicality is also not 100%.

“We needed to manage different situations. Estevao was out. Joao Pedro was not 100% but made the effort to pay for part of the game.”

Maresca also offered more detail on Joao Pedro’s fitness, suggesting the forward had complained of an injury before the game.

“If I was [only] thinking about Bayern Munich, then Joao would be on the bench [against Brentford],” said Maresca.

“Joao played because the focus was about tonight, but when you have so many games you have to plan different options.

“Our focus was about tonight. We are playing Champions League because we did well in the Premier League. If we want to play Champions League next season we need to do well in the Premier League [this season].”