Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has been speaking to the media before Wednesday’s Premier League game against Leeds at Elland Road (kick-off 20:15 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
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There are no new injury concerns, but Romeo Lavia remains sidelined and Dario Essugo has suffered a setback in his recovery.
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On Essugo: “He was OK and started some sessions with us but he now needs to slow down a little bit. He will be out again, hopefully it’s nothing important.”
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Cole Palmer “is available” and could feature against Leeds as “the idea is to give him some minutes until he can play 90 minutes” again.
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Maresca said he “would like” captain Reece James “to start every game” but they “need to see” because they are continuing to manage his minutes.
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On James playing well in midfield: “He can play in both positions. He has been a full-back his whole life but he has also played as a midfielder. When we decide for him [to play] as a midfielder, we want physicality in the middle. It depends on the game plan. He is doing very well.”
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Maresca said goalkeeper Robert Sanchez “is improving, especially in build-up” play and his performance against Arsenal “was one of his best games in terms” of that.
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He did not say who could replace Moises Caicedo, who will begin a three-game ban, but Andrey Santos “is ready” if needed and so is Josh Acheampong.
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On what he expects from opponents Leeds: “This is a good question because I don’t know. Daniel Farke has played all games with a back four until the second half against Manchester City when they went [to] a back five. We will try to prepare for both and when we see the line-up we will see.”
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Maresca acknowledged Chelsea’s away form is a lot better than their home form and “there is no coincidence” on that, but because of the fast flow of games it is hard to find the right time now to analyse exactly why.
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