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Chelsea need careful rotation with four important games in three competitions

By Dan Clark

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 16: Chelsea manager Antonio Conte shakes hands with Olivier Giroud as he leaves the pitch during The Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round match between Chelsea and Hull City at Stamford Bridge on February 16, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 16: Chelsea manager Antonio Conte shakes hands with Olivier Giroud as he leaves the pitch during The Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round match between Chelsea and Hull City at Stamford Bridge on February 16, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images) /
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Antonio Conte needs to manage his Chelsea squad over the coming weeks. The big matches come thick in fast before the next international break at the end of March.

The Blues face consecutive away trips to Manchester against the Premier League’s current top two before a must-win home game against Crystal Palace. Chelsea then face Barcelona in the return leg in the Champions League before the FA Cup quarter final on March 17.

These five games across three competitions will play a big part in determining how successful Chelsea’s end of the season is.

Chelsea have had a gruelling winter. They played 22 times since the beginning of December at a pace of nearly a game every four days. Antonio Conte has managed his squad carefully. Only four Blues played 70% of the available minutes in that span: Cesar Azpilicueta, N’Golo Kante, Eden Hazard and Antonio Rudiger.

That is a heavy workload and it would be unrealistic to expect performance levels to stay at the level of Tuesday’s draw against Barcelona. The lack of midweek action between the United and City games will help, but Conte will need to rotate in some areas to avoid complacency and fatigue.

Key players such as N’Golo Kante and Eden Hazard will likely feature in every game. Conte should use his other squad players to full effect. Gary Cahill, for example, could play instead of Antonio Rudiger. The German has played the full 90 in each of the last three games.

Danny Drinkwater or Tiemoue Bakayoko are options in midfield to relieve Cesc Fabregas, whilst Davide Zappacosta and new signing Emerson Palmieri provide backup at wing-back. Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud offer obvious possibilities if Conte wants a focal striker, rather than the false-9 he used on Wednesday.

Despite the importance of the game and the level of the opponent, Antonio Conte cannot play his same best XI from Tuesday night. Pedro will almost certainly be rested. He started each of the last six matches and has played more minutes than anyone else in that time.

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With a top four battle, an FA Cup semi-final and a Champions League quarter-final berth up for grabs, Conte will have difficulty prioritising one competition over any other. Chelsea are approaching the business end of the season ,and the whole squad needs to be ready for the challenge.

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