Chelsea: Three things to look for vs. Morecambe in the FA Cup
2. Performances on both ends of the spectrum
One of the biggest things to keep an eye on in the next game is the performances from each individual. Obviously the collective result and form matters given how poor things have been recently, but there are just so many individual storylines with each player.
Lampard is expected to field a Chelsea team that includes a handful of youth players. Besides the obvious names of academy graduates with the first team (Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Fikayo Tomori and Billy Gilmour), some other prospects trained with Lampard’s side throughout the week. The individuals who trained with the first team yesterday were Tino Anjorin, Lewis Bate and Henry Lawrence—all names Blues fans should recognize. A handful of other youngsters are in line to get their debuts too; Marcel Lewis, Tino Livramento and Jude Soonsup-Bell all took part in practice as well. The attention and eyes of spectators will naturally drift towards the fresh-faced phenoms, but all of the pressure remains on the struggling mainstays.
Aside from Reece James, Andreas Christensen and N’Golo Kante—none of whom are particularly slumping anyway—Lampard hasn’t given much of an update as to who is available against Morecambe. Presumably, he’ll view this match as he did the Barnsley game. It’ll be a chance to debut some academy talent, give some back-ups a fresh run out and throw some out-of-form stars out there to boost their confidence.
Don’t be at all surprised if players like Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech are named to the starting XI on Sunday. Havertz has enjoyed some time on the bench, stringing together some impressive substitute appearances as he continues to recover from COVID-19. Meanwhile, Ziyech was a standout performer against Man City for all of the wrong reasons. He was particularly bad, but you can’t judge him too harshly considering it was his first game back from injury. These two—plus Timo Werner, if he plays—will be under the microscope against Morecambe.
Obviously, any flawless showings from academy players are welcomed, but not necessary. After all, they’re teenagers playing on one of the biggest stages in European football. On the other hand though, the struggling first team players need to put in a good shift or risk their confidence levels suffering even more than they have already.