Three things to look for as Chelsea hosts Sheffield United before the break
3. Rotation
It’s beginning to feel like many Chelsea sites are beginning to break this concept down ad nauseam, but it’s an important part of the season’s storyline. The Premier League’s inability to understand why teams called for an extended bench and two additional substitutes is already beginning to play a huge part in club performances. For justification on this, just look at the table. Further, cup competitions aren’t helping either as some players are playing around 270 minutes every seven days. While that doesn’t sound like a lot to some, just remember these are professional footballers playing in competitive matches, giving it all they possibly can. Factor in travel and reduced recovery time, it’s not hard to see why rotation has been so important.
This concept is especially important for Chelsea. The Blues have had to deal with a slew of injuries thus far, on top of getting new signings up to match fitness. Christian Pulisic made it just a few games before re-injuring himself, Hakim Ziyech is just getting integrated, Cesar Azpilicueta was dealing with recovery early on—as was Ben Chilwell—and Thiago Silva needs more rest than anyone else. Take into account that Kai Havertz now has COVID-19 and things have been a bit of a mess for Lampard in the grand scheme of things.
Players like Ziyech, Chilwell, Silva, Tammy Abraham and N’Golo Kante were substituted off against Rennes purely for rest. Now, Lampard has some decisions to make for the match against Sheffield, who sits 19th. The upcoming international break won’t give some Blues stars a chance to rest, so Saturday may be the last opportunity before a tough run of games (Newcastle, Rennes, Spurs, Sevilla and Leeds) on the other side of national duty.
Next. As Chelsea settles, more players find themselves on the fringes. dark
What are three things you’ll be looking for in the match? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!