Struggling Chelsea star set to be recalled to squad against Everton as Maresca clarifies decision to drop him | OneFootball

Following his exclusion from the squad for the west London derby with Fulham, Christopher Nkunku is set to return to the Chelsea group for Everton’s visit to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The French forward was omitted from the squad for the win over Fulham due to Maresca’s decision to include other players instead.

But he is set to be recalled against Everton with Chelsea boss Maresca explaining: “Last week when he was out, we wanted to give some of the young players the chance to continue to be with us. Now he’s back, it was just for that.

“He’s training well, in this moment. If he is in the squad (against Fulham), one of the others [would] have to be out for the Fulham game, probably Tyrique George.

“Since day one, I just tried to do my best for the club and every decision I take is thinking about the best for the club. I know Christo cost a lot of money and Ty is from the academy, but I have to make these decisions.”

George repaid his manager’s selection choice when scoring after his introduction from the bench during last weekend’s match at Craven Cottage, with his equaliser sparking the turnaround that eventually saw the Blues secure all three points.

“We are excited with him (George) but now is the moment we need to manage them [academy products],” Maresca said. “Too easy they can be excited or down. They started the pre-season with us and we saw they can be good for us and decided to keep them with us.”

To further highlight Nkunku’s standing in Maresca’s plans, the Italian went on to stipulate that his inclusion comes due to the absence of Malo Gusto through injury: “Malo Gusto is out, we can bring another one, Christopher is with us.”

The injured defender worryingly hobbled off following Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Fulham but his absence will not be for long, with Maresca stating: “He’s already running, he won’t be available tomorrow but hopefully for the next one.”