Chelsea’s squad not good enough for the money spent – but Rosenior’s depth is improving | OneFootball

This is a syndicated version of this story, originally featured on the BBC Sport website.

Chelsea’s win over Wrexham on Saturday was a fun game for the neutrals, with plenty of goals and storylines for the audience at home to enjoy.

For some Blues fans, however the chaotic win against lower league opposition was more evidence that this is a poorly constructed squad. To many of them, the 4-2 result against a team that was in League One a year ago was another reminder of how inadequate Chelsea’s second string is. It wasn’t until Wrexham were down to ten men that the away side really took control.

Despite the hundreds of millions spent in the last few years, any deviation from the first XI by the manager ends up being a major gamble.

Chelsea’s squad improving as young players develop and injured stars return

That’s a reasonable take on the big picture. However in the short term, there were a lot of positives that could be taken from the game regarding the squad. Throughout the team, the options available to Liam Rosenior are improving.

In midfield, both Romeo Lavia and Dario Essugo played significant minutes after their respective returns from long term injury issues. Finally the pressure on Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez to play in every game is easing, and the overworked pair were allowed to stay back in London to rest ahead of the Champions League game against PSG tomorrow night.

Meanwhile at left back Jorrel Hato put in another improved performance, and first choice option Marc Cucurella returned from his hamstring problem to build some match fitness.

In central defence, Mamadou Sarr got a third Chelsea start and continued to look like a solid third choice; and in the attacking line Alejandro Garnacho put in another dangerous showing to show how he’s recovered from a bad spell.

Just in time for decisive games of the season, Rosenior has some reliable depth to fall back on.

Will Faulks @willfaulks