Mauricio Pochettino Explains Decision to Bench Enzo Fernandez in Chelsea’s Victory
Mauricio Pochettino, the manager of Chelsea, has provided an explanation for his decision to bench Enzo Fernandez, the club’s marquee signing, in their 2-0 victory over Sheffield United on Saturday.
The Argentine midfielder, who joined from Benfica last January in a £107million deal, had been a regular starter for Chelsea this season, except for one match due to a muscular injury. However, Pochettino chose to relegate him to the bench for the recent game, with Moises Caicedo and Conor Gallagher playing behind an attack-minded front four.
Despite some frustration in the first half, Chelsea dominated the match, enjoying 78% possession, and secured the win with goals from Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson in the second half.
Fernandez eventually came on as a substitute in the 69th minute, but Pochettino insists that little should be read into his team selection. When asked about leaving Fernandez out and the improved performance of Caicedo in his absence, Pochettino explained, “You can only play 11. It’s a big competition and sometimes you need one characteristic, or one profile or another profile, and you need to choose the player.”
Pochettino further explained his tactical decisions, stating, “Today we saw that the combination between Caicedo and Gallagher, plus Cole Palmer like a number 10, was a possibility to be the best combination for today. But it doesn’t mean that maybe Tuesday [against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup] Enzo can play with another, and another is on the bench.”
He also discussed the halftime substitution of Palmer and Raheem Sterling, saying, “In the first half we didn’t give the possibility for him and for the team to find better positions on the pitch, that is why we changed. And we changed also the way we build in a medium block.”
Pochettino emphasized the team’s frustration in the first half but praised their reaction in the second half, stating, “We moved some pieces and changed the positions and we were much better and started to create a real problem for Sheffield United.”
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