Chelsea at Dortmund: 3 players that must start for the Blues

Ben Chilwell

If Potter were going to make one altercation from the team that started in east London this past weekend, replacing Marc Cucurella for Ben Chilwell on the left side of the backline has to be the first choice. It is quite clear to anyone who has watched the Blues since Mykhailo Mudryk joined that Cucurella does not provide the tools on the left side to get the most out of the Ukrainian speedster. Chilwell’s ability to be more adventurous as the left-back could bring the most out of Mudryk.

The last time the former Leicester City defender played 90 minutes for Chelsea in the Champions League he was by far one of the Blues’ best players. Chilwell totaled eight shots creating actions to lead the team while accumulating nine progressive passes in a 2-1 win to close out the group stage against Dinamo Zagreb. Health has been a concern for the 26-year-old. Having increased his minutes total over the last two games, it would be a massive plus if he is able to go 60 or maybe even 70 minutes this time around to shake up the left flank for Potter.

Teams like Manchester City are monitoring the English international for a possible summer move, but it has been clear that Cucurella is not a serviceable enough replacement for a player that adds so much for the Blues when he is on the pitch. Cucurella does not love to get forward and overlap with Mudryk to provide him support as he attacks backlines.

The Liverpool cameo was such a bright start for the former Shakhtar Donetsk attacker, but since then, he has almost been invisible from any sort of attack from CFC. Chilwell’s inclusion is going to spark more things in the final third for the Blues. If Mudryk finds his way into the starting lineup alongside Chilwell, we could see a reinvigorated player compared to the one in the last two matches.