Joao Pedro promised so much after arriving in the summer and looking great in the Club World Cup, but has struggled since. He hasn’t added the ruthless finishing that Nicolas Jackson lacks, but even worse he doesn’t offer anything like the same off the ball work or link up play as the Senegal star.
January is just a couple of weeks way now, and as you might expect transfer rumours are really starting to heat up. We’ve just had our first transfer bomb in some time from the well connected Telegraph Chelsea man, Matt Law.
Alejandro Garnacho was only on the pitch for 45 minutes for Chelsea last night, but he really made the difference. After a first period where the Blues couldn’t really hurt Cardiff, who were controlling the ball well, Garnacho’s drive and running made the game far more open and got his teammates further up the pitch into dangerous positions.
If you looked at Chelsea’s rotated team to face Cardiff last night, even in a rotated team there was one very conspicuous absence – Marc Cucurella was not in the squad, which is not something Blues fans are used to.
Moises Caicedo was brought in to Chelsea’s midfield to strengthen them last night in a largely rotated team, and it worked a treat alongside fellow enforcer Andrey Santos.
Chelsea had to call on their big guns last night to beat Cardiff and qualify for the EFL Cup semi finals. Enzo Maresca tried to rotate things, but ended up bringing on a chunk of his regulars to get the job done against a spirited Bluebirds outfit.
Pedro Neto scored another crucial goal last night, taking his tally for the season to 6, making it already his joint most prolific season. He’s going to get a lot more.
Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith believes Chelsea have a made a “really good” signing in Pedro Neto after the blues beat Cardiff on Tuesday night. Chelsea advanced to the semi finals of the Carabao Cup with a 3-1 win against the League One side, but were made to work harder than they would have wanted to.
Chelsea have reportedly informed a loan club that a player they have from Chelsea is not for sale at the moment. Chelsea have been signing up all the top young talents from around the world, and some of them have gone out on loan right now to get some vital development and experience.
An advisor has given his opinion on the Enzo Maresca situation at Chelsea right now after his comments at the weekend. Maresca came out and basically said he believes he is not being supported by the owners.
Juventus believe Andrey Santos is a realistic option should a move for Marseille’s Pierre Emile Hojbjerg fail to materialise. Santos joined Chelsea in January 2023 from Brazilian club Vasco da Gama in a deal believed to worth just £13m, and is looking somewhat of a bargain.
Troy Deeney has admitted he’s not a fan of Malo Gusto as he revealed why he doesn’t rate the France international. Gusto has been back to somewhere near his best form this season, after a difficult campaign last time out in which he struggled for consistency.
Brazilian youngster Gabriel Mec has confirmed he held talks with Chelsea last summer before deciding to stay at Gremio. The Blues have completely changed their transfer policy since the takeover by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in 2022.
There was a very surprising player who got given the lowest match rating for the 3-1 win against Cardiff City last night. Chelsea struggled their way through the 90 minutes, finally managing to beat the League One side with two late goals from subs Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho.
Pedro Neto thinks Chelsea lost a bit of concentration in their Carabao Cup quarter final against Cardiff City on Tuesday night. The Blues advanced to the semi finals with a 3-1 win over the League One outfit, but were made to work harder than they would have wanted.
It was another shocking performance by one Chelsea player in the Carabao Cup last night after he failed to stake a claim. It was an opportunity for Enzo Maresca’s second string team and fringe players to stake a claim to get more minutes in his preferred starting Xl last night, but they pretty much all failed at this test – some more than others.
Former Chelsea striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has criticised Marc Guiu for not taking his chance against Cardiff City. The Blues advanced to the Carabao Cup semi finals with a 3-1 win over the League One side, but they were made to work hard.
One player is now confirmed to be out of our upcoming fixture against Newcastle United this coming Saturday afternoon. Maresca has already been talking about a lack of time between fixtures ahead of this game, suggesting that fatigue is always going to be an issue in these situations.
Enzo Maresca has once again complained about the little time he and his players have between fixtures. The Blues boss was speaking after last night’s Carabao Cup win against Cardiff City, where they beat the League One side 3-1 away from home.
Enzo Maresca has been criticised a few times this season because of his rotation policy. But in reality, it’s essential that he rotates. He just needs his second string to play well when they’re in the team.
Few players have faced as much criticism or calls to be benched and sold since arriving at a club as Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. A series of costly mistakes completely eroded supporters’ confidence in him, particularly during his first season, when he committed five errors that directly led to goals.
The officials have been confirmed for Chelsea's Carabao Cup tie against Cardiff City on Tuesday night. Chelsea have a chance to book their third semi-final spot in 18 months under Enzo Maresca as a quarter-final tie against Cardiff City awaits in the Carabao Cup.