Rosenior makes the same tactical mistake which Maresca did – and fans are grumbling | OneFootball

Liam Rosenior surprised us all with his team selection tonight – we knew he’d go strong to ensure 3 points that are crucial for advancing in the Champions League. But we didn’t expect him to go this strong. With the exception of the injured Cole Palmer (who, to be fair, could have been dropped anyway), this is close to a full strength team in midfield and attack.

Yet, with 45 minutes played, they haven’t produced a goal.  The Blues have had 71.9% possession, and used that to generate 11 shots, but from that they have just 0.81 xG.

Delap isolated – and inverted Gusto not helping out

Malo Gusto with a Chelsea news logo. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Liam Delap has been isolated up top, and while he’s managed to occupy Pafos’ back three, the space he’s creating is not being exploited. Rosenior is continuing the Enzo Maresca concept of having a full back (in this case Malo Gusto) move into a central, number ten position when his team are in possession.

While it has been known to work, it’s just a concept we hate. Why would you want a full back (and not a very technical one at that) playing in the most crucial creative space?

It looks like Estevao Willian will be coming on in the second half, which should make a big difference in adding some directness and speed to the attack. That’s what the fans want – they’re getting restless.

In other news…

Cole Palmer is not in the squad tonight – we were expecting him to be rested, but the update we had from Liam Rosenior about him is a little worrying. It still sounds like he should be OK to play on Sunday.

The full team news for tonight’s game is in our post here. We can’t say we agree with a lot of Rosenior’s choices for this one.