Frank Lampard could well make a host of changes to his Chelsea side that were beaten at Real Madrid when Brighton & Hove Albion come to Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon.
After a gruelling 90-plus minutes on Wednesday night as the Blues were given the runaround by Los Blancos, Lampard may take the opportunity to rest a few players when his side welcome the Seagulls to west London. The Premier League is effectively done now for Chelsea, who have virtually nothing to play for other than pride so it presents a chance to rest a few players.
However, Lampard is still awaiting his first win since returning to the club as interim boss until the end of the season so he will want to put a side out he is confident can beat Brighton. It will be far from an easy task, though, with the high-flying Seagulls chasing a spot in this season's top-four.
READ MORE: Real Madrid defeat serves as Chelsea reminder for Todd Boehly not to rush huge transfer decision
Lampard may call upon some players that haven't played much football recently to give them an opportunity. The interim head coach has not even seen a lot of Chelsea's big squad play competitively yet so it also gives him the chance to get to know some of the players better.
There could be scope for goalkeeper Edouard Mendy to come back into the side. The 31-year-old fell out of favour under Graham Potter and a finger injury didn't help his case even when Kepa Arrizabalaga was struggling.
It wasn't the best performance from the Spaniard in the defeat to Real earlier in the week, so Lampard may be tempted to switch things up in that regard. The caretaker Chelsea boss was actually in charge when the club signed Mendy from Rennes back in the summer of 2020 and dropped Kepa back then for the Senegal international.
Whether he goes for a back-three or a back-four at the weekend will be really interesting. He may be tempted to remain with a three in defence if that is what he plans to do against Madrid in the second leg a few days later.
Thiago Silva played his first minutes in a while on Wednesday so the 38 year-old Brazilian could be rested as Lampard looks to manage his return. The bigger game is on Tuesday night, so Silva would be better if he was fit and ready for that rather than being risked against Brighton.
Trevoh Chalobah could come into a back-three with Kalidou Koulibaly limping off at the Bernabeu in the week. Chalobah has played in the middle of a back-three before so that could be something to keep an eye on. Benoit Badiashile isn't even in the Champions League squad so he looks like a certainty to play some part at the weekend while Wesley Fofana could keep his spot on the right-hand side of a three.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek could come in for Reece James, who has struggled with fitness issues this season. Loftus-Cheek has played at wing-back on numerous occasions and he usually does quite well. There could be scope for Lampard to play Ben Chilwell given he will be suspended for the return leg next week at home to Real Madrid.
Enzo Fernandez seems to play every game so he may well continue in the middle of the pitch for Chelsea. N'Golo Kante is likely to be rested as Lampard continues to manage his minutes after a seven-month absence from the side because of a serious hamstring injury.
Conor Gallagher could start for a second successive Premier League match after a brief cameo against Real. Gallagher has played a lot of minutes this season but the majority of them have come from the bench for the England international.
There could be a completely different attacking line. Joao Felix and Raheem Sterling could be rested if they are in Lampard's plans for next Tuesday. Kai Havertz as well usually plays in the bigger games so he may settle for a space on the bench.
Mykhailo Mudryk played no part at the Bernabeu so he could be given his first minutes under Lampard. Noni Madueke isn't registered in the Champions League squad so there could be some game-time for him but he might miss out because of Mason Mount.
Mount returned to action on Wednesday against Real but only managed around 15 minutes as he was eased back into the team. Lampard will be keen to get some more minutes in Mount's legs before the big one on Tuesday.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang may be handed a very rare start for Chelsea. The former Arsenal captain isn't registered in the Champions League squad, so Tuesday won't be in consideration regarding his playing time. Lampard brought him on against Wolves last weekend so he clearly wants to experiment with Aubameyang, who fell out of favour under Potter.
READ NEXT:
Real Madrid showed Chelsea have already lost the player Frank Lampard needs to fix key problem
Four things learned as Thibaut Courtois reveals Chelsea regret as Thiago Silva left furious
Frank Lampard slammed over Real Madrid decision that 'cost' Chelsea in Champions League
Every word Frank Lampard said on Chelsea's defeat, Joao Felix and set-piece issue
Chelsea news and transfers LIVE: All the latest news, views and rumours from Stamford Bridge
