Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has rung the changes with his side to take on Liverpool today, with eight tweaks made to the Blues’ side.
Arne Slot leads his side for the first time as Premier League champions, having wrapped up the title with a resounding win over Tottenham last weekend. With their job done and dusted, all that remains for the Reds is to extend their lead at the top of the table, with Arsenal having dropped points again on Saturday against Bournemouth.
They will face a tougher test this time around though, with Chelsea targeting a place in next season’s Champions League, and with a place in the UEFA Conference League final looking all but secure, Maresca is able to name a strong team for today’s game at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues currently sit fifth in the Premier League table, which would be enough to earn a spot at Europe’s top table. They are level on points with Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa though, with today’s game presenting an opportunity to create some space – even if it is just for a temporary period.
Like his opposite number, Maresca has made a lot of changes to his side from their trip to Sweden in midweek.
Eight changes are made in total, with Cole Palmer, Moises Caicedo and Nicolas Jackson among those returning after the 4-1 win over Djurgarden. Reece James is among those who drop to the bench, along with Jadon Sancho and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Chelsea confirmed team vs Liverpool: Sanchez, Caicedo, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella, Lavia, Fernandez, Madueke, Palmer, Neto, Jackson.
Subs: Jorgensen, Tosin, Badiashile, Acheampong, Gusto, James, Dewsbury-Hall, Sancho, George.
(Image: Getty Images)
Chelsea is set to give Liverpool a guard of honor following the Reds’ title win – a gesture that has received mixed reviews from some former players. Maresca though is hoping it might provide some inspiration for his side ahead of next season.
“It’s tradition. We have to do that, and we are going to do that,” Maresca said. They won the Premier League, so they deserve it. In terms of the gap between us and Liverpool, it is there, you can see this clearly. My feeling is we are [moving] in the right direction and hopefully this gap can be smaller and smaller.
“The difference is they have been consistent compared to us. For part of the season we were very good, and then we lost some games. This has probably been the main reason why the gap is there – also in terms of experienced players who know how to win games and these kinds of things, I think they have something more compared to us.
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“For sure, if you want to close the gap with these kind of clubs then you have to do things (like adding experience). Our team next season will be better in terms of experience because this season has been one more year together. There are ones who are growing, like Levi [Colwill] for instance. He is growing a lot in terms of leadership. Next year he will be better and better. Hopefully the ones that we have, they can grow and help us in terms of experience.
“I don’t think we need to give a guard of honour to understand how good it is to win the Premier League – we know that it’s something very nice. But for sure when you are standing there, probably in their minds our players are thinking, ‘I would like one day to be there.’
“It’s always nice to play this kind of game, but I don’t think Liverpool’s approach is going to be different or relaxed.”
