Chelsea face AC Milan on Tuesday night as they look to move forwards with their attempts to get to the last 16 of the Champions League. After a loss and a draw in the Blues' opening two matches, Graham Potter's side laid down a gauntlet for all teams to see when they beat Milan 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.
That victory saw them surpass the Serie A side in Group E to take second place on four points, behind Red Bull Salzburg, who sit in first on five points. Milan themselves still have four points in third, while Dinamo Zagreb are bottom with three.
The group is close, and Chelsea cannot afford to let go of their momentum at the San Siro, with another three points set to put them in a very good position for progression. Wesley Fofana's injury in match week three, an N'Golo Kante setback and Hakim Ziyech's illness have put some constraints on Potter's team, but otherwise, the former Brighton man has a large group to pick from.
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With that said, football.london takes a look at some of the changes Potter should make against Milan as he looks to record a fourth win in a row and continue his undefeated streak as Chelsea boss.
Formation change
Since taking the Chelsea hot seat, Potter has fluctuated between three central defenders and a fluid four at the back. This has seen Marc Cucurella fulfil left-back and left-central defender roles simultaneously. Both have shown promise and found success, no more visible than against Milan and Wolves over the last seven days.
The strength of the Blues' performance against Milan already this season will likely be taken into consideration, even if it is a system that the Italian opponents will now be more familiar. Thiago Silva's return to fitness allows three central defenders to be played easier. With the contrasting attacking styles of the likes of Olivier Giroud and Rafael Leao, having a variety of profiles for the backline is helpful, while it also enables Reece James to push hard in the opposite direction while offering defensive cover too.
Utilising either Raheem Sterling or Christian Pulisic in a wing-back role with minimal defensive duties could be problematic against Milan's attacking talents, while Potter noted ahead of the first encounter the importance of the wide areas, that a traditional back four may not be able to expose or defend as easily.
There will be a degree of risk returning to a back three and wing-backs, but on this occasion, if it isn't broken, don't fix it.
Strengthen the team
Chelsea made seven changes when they faced Wolves at the weekend for a variety of reasons. Some were enforced, while more appeared to be to manage the workload of his side, even if the former Brighton coach said his alterations were only about beating the Midlands side.
He explained: "Thiago [Silva] had a heavy cold at the start of the week but played against Milan. Two days to recover is really short for him, so we didn't want to take the chance there. Ben Chilwell playing three games in a week after recovering from an ACL injury. That wouldn't have been the smartest thing to do to put him out there, especially when we've got Marc Cucurella.
"Reece James had a dead leg that wasn't fully recovered yesterday, so we wanted to give him a bit of extra time and use him at the back end of the game rather than the start. Obviously, we missed Wesley [Fofana] and Mateo Kovacic, three games in a week for him would've been too much as he has been nursing a knee problem. So, again we can use Jorginho and Ruben [Loftus-Cheek].
"Raheem [Sterling] has had a load of football this season, so we thought it would be good for him to have a breather and help us at the back end of the game if we needed him. It's similar with Auba [Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang]. Even though he is in a great moment and forwards rely on rhythm, he hasn't had that much football previous to coming to Chelsea and has had an injury. It felt like today was a good chance to give him a breather, and if we needed him at the back end of the game, we could've used him. That was the thinking process."
The win over Wolves saw a number of players take their opportunity and impress, but it's hard to ignore that most of those on the bench were rested for a reason. Most likely to make their return quickly. There's little doubt James, Sterling, Thiago Silva, Mateo Kovacic, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are all likely to return to the team immediately, whether Ben Chilwell does for Cucurella, maybe a more difficult decision.
Rest players who haven't been yet
With so many players rested against Wolves, those who have now played two or three games in a row stand out just a little bit more and perhaps Tuesday night will see their turn to watch at least part of the match from the bench.
Mason Mount had a crucial impact against Wolves on his way to two assists and has started each of Potter's first four matches in charge, with three coming since the international break. His importance is clear, but with most of the cavalry set to return, perhaps Potter takes the opportunity to let Mount get some rest in his legs. The England international could argue having not completed 90 minutes in any of that trio of matches, his position should be maintained. Perhaps Kai Havertz or Conor Gallagher will look to take on his role instead.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, having started in Chelsea's last two games, could also find himself vulnerable, with Kovacic starting from the bench against Wolves and Jorginho against Milan. It may simply mean it is the former Crystal Palace loanee's turn to ensure he can maintain his fitness throughout the season.
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