Chelsea enjoyed a hectic end to the January transfer window after signing Enzo Fernandez in the eleventh hour on deadline day. The 22-year-old's arrival saw the Blues' total spend for the month amount to an eye-watering £323million.
After penning an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge, Fernandez has followed Mykhailo Mudryk, Joao Felix, Noni Madueke, David Datro and Andrey Santos to Cobham, while Malo Gusto arrives in the summer. With so many new players at Graham Potter's disposal, he must now pick the west Londoners' best starting lineup.
But, the Chelsea boss has been left with more questions than answers as he looks to integrate new cultures, play styles and personalities into one changing room. There have been plenty of promising early signs thus far as Benoit Badiashile and Thiago Silva forge a good relationship.
READ MORE: Enzo Fernandez first words on Chelsea transfer after completing £106m deadline day Benfica move
So, with that being said, football.london has taken a look at Potter's best starting lineup as Chelsea head into the second half of the season looking for Champions League qualification
Formation
A 4-2-3-1 allows Potter to field as many of the Blues' exciting forward players as possible, within reason, while also operating a strong defensive structure. It's likely that the Chelsea boss will prefer a 4-3-3 or a 3-4-2-1 until the end of the season though.
Goalkeeper
Kepa Arrizabalaga remains to be the west Londoners' strongest option between the sticks for now. But, if Edouard Mendy can impress when given the opportunity, the Senegalese star will be back in the starting lineup.
A wildcard option for Chelsea would be Gabriel Slonina. The 18-year-old joined the first-team squad in the winter and, while he's relatively inexperienced, the shot-stopper has an outside chance of leapfrogging his competitors.
Defence
Luckily for Potter, the back four picks itself which can only be a good sign. Badiashile and Silva appear to have found the makings of a great centre-back partnership.
At full-back are Ben Chilwell and Reece James. Marc Cucurella is a very good backup option to have at left-back but, once the former returns to full fitness, the Englishman will surely return to the starting lineup.
Midfield
A World Cup-winning midfield pivot of N'Golo Kante and Enzo Fernandez will be a sight to behold once the Frenchman returns from injury. Kante is yet to play under Potter after picking up a hamstring injury against Tottenham in August.
He's been on the sidelines ever since as he continues to recover. In the meantime, Chelsea will have to operate a three-man midfield to make up for the 31-year-old's famous work rate.
Attack
A front-four of Mudryk, Felix, Madueke and Kai Havertz will be a force to be reckoned with, not to mention the additions of Hakim Ziyech and Mason Mount off the bench. But, Chelsea have an issue in the striker department.
Havertz isn't a natural talisman, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is out of form and Fofana has recently joined. The latter of the trio could surprise many when given a run of games.
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