Finding the right balance with rotation will be key as head coach faces tricky Champions League task on Wednesday
E
uropean away days were not so taxing for Chelsea last season. They were too good for the Conference League and were able to win it even though Enzo Maresca often used those Thursday assignments to play his reserves and keep his best players fresh for the Premier League.
This time, though, the physical demands are tougher. Competing in the Champions League has been more sapping and Maresca has to work out how to strike the right balance when his team face Qarabag at the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium on Wednesday evening, in their fourth game of the league phase.
There is no mistaking the 5,000-mile round trip to Azerbaijan for a free hit. Chelsea followed up defeat at Bayern Munich in their opening game by recording wins against Benfica and Ajax, but there is work to do if they are to finish in the top eight and avoid the playoff round. Qarabag, who have also taken six points from their three games, are not to be taken lightly. They have made huge strides under Gurban Gurbanov, who has been in his post for 17 years, and are unrecognisable from the team that lost 6-0 and 4-0 against Chelsea in the Champions League’s group stage in 2017.
