Making sense of Chelsea’s substitute proposal

Chelsea proposed an idea for the Premier League shareholders meeting on Thursday, but what is it and how does it impact the Blues?

Chelsea proposed a new idea for the remainder of the Premier League season regarding the bench. The Blues suggested an increase from seven to nine bench players present on match days until domestic matches are completed. Premier League shareholders will discuss the proposal and other short-term changes at a meeting on Thursday. The officials will vote on all matters on June 11.

Chelsea’s idea is the second pitched to the shareholders regarding player figures, along with allowing five substitutes for the rest of the league year. The Blues suggested this change for two reasons: player safety and strategy.

Injuries are the biggest concern around the league’s restart, aside from Coronavirus exposure. With players having an unusual two month break in the middle of the season, it’s difficult for many to come back match fit. Despite staying active during quarantine, training and matches a different animal.

A few weeks of training will go a long way, but the amount of fixtures clubs will play in during this short period will test the fitness of many. Chelsea is one of the few clubs in the Premier League still alive in multiple competitions. The Blues have nine remaining league matches, as well as an away leg in the Champions League and a quarterfinal of the FA Cup. The league is set to resume on June 20, which gives Chelsea less than a month and a half to complete the domestic season and likely wrap up the FA Cup.

Teams will play matches both mid-week and at the weekend from June 20 to the beginning of August. The abundance of fixtures in such a short span can only be compared to the winter break period, which players have vocally opposed in the past. Allowing for more substitutes and more options off the bench is a great way to combat the fixture congestion.

The question remains: What does this mean for Chelsea? Well, aside from more straight swaps of Ross Barkley for Mateo Kovacic, a lot. The fact Chelsea was the club that proposed this idea says a lot about the players that have trained with the first team lately. An extended substitutes bench and more changes would allow Frank Lampard and his staff to give youth players more match time.

Currently, there is some reluctance to field players like Ian Maatsen, Armando Broja and Tino Anjorin. These youngsters find themselves on the pitch in small cup matches against inferior opposition or in the rare case they find themselves named to the bench during a blowout. For example, both Anjorin and Broja made their first Premier League appearances against Everton because injuries kept regular first team players off the bench.

Having nine replacement opportunities and more allocated changes allows Lampard to get his youngsters into matches that’ve already been won. Seeing as Chelsea plays four of the Premier League’s bottom five teams during the remainder of the season, it’s quite possible those academy players could see a lot of time on the pitch.

In addition to more minutes for academy players, it keeps the fitness levels of Blues players up. Christian Pulisic, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi and N’Golo Kante—should he decide to play—have all missed time due to injuries this season. A return to the pitch following injury is not always smooth, so being able to give them limited time on the pitch with a back-up plan just in case is a wonderful opportunity for Lampard. This would also benefit Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who hasn’t seen the pitch in over a year and needs to ease back into things.

Overall, this is a rule that would benefit the entirety of the Premier League. With Lampard’s record of giving academy players a chance, it is just an added bonus for the Blues.