{"id":300384,"date":"2023-12-18T09:24:28","date_gmt":"2023-12-18T09:24:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tellmysport.com\/?p=300384"},"modified":"2023-12-18T09:24:28","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T09:24:28","slug":"chelsea-face-problem-with-frustrated-star-mauricio-pochettino-dropped-from-xi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tellmysport.com\/soccer\/chelsea-face-problem-with-frustrated-star-mauricio-pochettino-dropped-from-xi\/","title":{"rendered":"Chelsea face problem with ‘frustrated’ star Mauricio Pochettino dropped from XI"},"content":{"rendered":"

‘No fear at home’ | Mauricio Pochettino reviews Chelsea’s win against Sheffield United<\/h3>\n

Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez may face a worrying predicament at Stamford Bridge after being dropped by Mauricio Pochettino for tactical reasons ahead of the Blues\u2019 2-0 victory over Sheffield United. Fernandez was a \u00a3107m signing at Stamford Bridge and his extortionate transfer fee should make him a guaranteed starter.<\/p>\n

Being left out of a Premier League match at home to a club rooted to the bottom of the division should be a warning to the Argentine.<\/p>\n

Pochettino ominously revealed that he simply preferred a midfield pairing of Conor Gallagher and Moises Caicedo for the clash with the Blades. Cole Palmer played ahead of the duo in a No 10 position.<\/p>\n

Had the Chelsea boss decided to drop Fernandez for fitness reasons amid a packed winter schedule then not many eyelids would have been batted. But the notion that the second-most expensive player of the Todd Boehly era does not command a guaranteed place in any given system is a concern.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly 11 can play. It’s a big competition and sometimes you need one characteristic. One profile or another profile,\u201d Pochettino said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to choose the player and of course we saw the combination between Caicedo and Gallagher and Cole like a No 10 was a possibility for the best combination for today. It doesn’t mean that maybe Tuesday Enzo plays and another is on the bench.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is approaching 12 months since Fernandez\u2019s nine-figure move from Benfica rocked English football. There have been flashes of the brilliance that helped Argentina win the World Cup last December.<\/p>\n

But the 22-year-old has at times been inconsistent and his best role in Chelsea\u2019s team is unclear. Pochettino has tried him as the deepest midfielder, as a classic box-to-box No 8, and behind striker Nicolas Jackson.<\/p>\n

The same cannot be said of Caicedo, whose \u00a3115m transfer from Brighton smashed Fernandez\u2019s British record fee and might have eased the pressure on the former River Plate ace. Caicedo has settled well and, more often than not, has looked like he might come to justify his fee.<\/p>\n