Chelsea face a tricky tie against Bournemouth this evening in the Premier League as Enzo Maresca targets only their second domestic win of the season.
All the talk will be regarding whether summer signing Jadon Sancho takes to the field tonight. The English winger has joined on a season-long loan move from Manchester United and could well make his debut for the Blues.
His inclusion in the squad means Maresca has an embarrassment of riches to choose from against the Cherries. The question is, who will make the starting XI? One player who could be dropped is Pedro Neto after an underwhelming display against Crystal Palace last time out.
Pedro Neto’s game in numbers vs Palace
The summer signing had grabbed an assist against Wolves a few weeks ago but failed to demonstrate his true talents against the London side.
He was booked after only eight minutes, while he managed just 22 touches and completed 13 passes during his 58 minutes on the pitch.
Pedro Neto’s stats vs Crystal Palace | |
|---|---|
Goals | 0 |
Assists | 0 |
Big chances created | 0 |
Key passes | 0 |
Dribble attempts (successful) | 2 (1) |
Total duels (won) | 5 (2) |
During that time, Neto failed to deliver an accurate cross from four attempts, won just two duels in total, and succeeded with one of his two dribble attempts, failing to generate anything of note in the final third.
This could be the ideal time to bring Sancho in for his first Chelsea start, but Maresca could also unleash another summer arrival – Joao Felix.
Sancho could, instead, replace Noni Madueke after the England international squandered two ‘big chances’ in the draw with Palace, as his poor finishing could open the door for the United loanee to be handed a start, whilst Felix could enter on the other side of the pitch.
João Félix should start for Chelsea against Bournemouth
The former Atlético Madrid starlet returned to the Stamford Bridge side during the summer, 12 months after spending six months on loan at the club.
Despite playing only 54 minutes in his two league matches so far, Felix has already found the scoresheet, netting the final goal during the 6-2 thrashing of Wolves in August.
The £170k-per-week star must surely be given his first start of the campaign, especially as three points this evening could allow Maresca to build some momentum.
When compared to his positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues, Felix ranks in the top 4% for non-penalty goals (0.51) and total shots (3.73) per 90 across the previous 365 days.
Furthermore, the attacking midfielder also ranked in the top 16% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90 (6.17), proving that not only does he have a keen eye for goal, but the 24-year-old gets into key positions on a regular basis.
The Portuguese gem was previously hailed as a “genius” by Roma sporting director Tiago Pinto, someone who knows all about his talents, but it is clear he hasn’t quite lived up to the massive hype that was generated upon his emergence onto the scene a few years ago.
Can his stay at Chelsea change this narrative? Only time will tell, of course, but if Maresca can get the best out of Felix, he could turn out to be one of his best summer signings.
