Maresca gives update on all absent players; continues to back “fantastic” starter | OneFootball

Enzo Maresca was asked for updates after last night’s win on the fitness of some of the players who had missed the game.

It’s good news in most cases – it sounds like only long term absentees Wesley Fofana and Reece James are certainly out for our next game, while Benoit Badiashile’s injury is still unknown – but seems minor:

“We had Joao [Felix] and Romeo [Lavia] that can probably be available for the next one. Carney [Chukwuemeka] after Astana was ill, Chilly [Ben Chilwell] was ill. Pedro was suspended,” Maresca explained.

“Then we have Reece [James] and Wes [Fofana] injured. Unfortunately, yesterday after the session, Benoit [Badiashile] felt something. This is the situation. And Misha [Mudryk is ill].”

All of those minor issues and illnesses could clear up quickly: there’s a home runaround against Shamrock Rovers on the Thursday but that will be kids and players who need minutes. By next weekend, we should be back to almost full health.

Enzo Maresca and Robert Sanchez celebrate at full time. (Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC)

Maresca repeats that Sanchez is his man after important stop

Also on the agenda in the presser were individual performances in the win. Maresca has always backed Robert Sanchez, and wasn’t going to miss the chance to praise his goalkeeper when given the chance by a question after the game about the Spaniard’s crucial stop from Christian Norgaard:

“If you remember, Bournemouth away, the penalty, against Aston Villa one-v-one against [Ollie] Watkins and Nottingham Forest at the end of the game, the save. Tonight, the save. We are happy with Robert, sometimes when we say things, you struggle to believe,” the coach said.

“But Robert is doing fantastic, Filip [Jorgensen] is doing exactly the same in the Conference League. This is what we want; two goalkeepers that can compete and help us win games.”

Sanchez still has us worried on the ball, but there’s no denying he has made crucial interventions at times.