Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca is facing a Barcelona dilemma, with one player just a yellow card away from a Champions League suspension.
Chelsea are set for one of the biggest matches they will face this season, as they welcome Barcelona to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night. The Blues have an identical record to their Catalan counterparts in the Champions League so far this season, having picked up two wins and one draw from their opening four matches.
Following a disappointing draw with Qarabag last time out, a win over Barca would certainly boost their hopes of landing a top-eight finish in the league phase. There will be challenges for Enzo Maresca to deal with, not least the absence of Cole Palmer, who picked up a freak toe injury that will keep him out over the next week or so.
Add to that the serious injury sustained by Levi Colwill and Chelsea will have to be at their best to deal with the threats that Hansi Flick can deploy. Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, and Marcus Rashford are just a few of the stars available to the visitors, showing their strength.
The main worry for Maresca will surround how to keep those players quiet, while the Blues will need a threat of their own going the other way. Then there are questions over the players who are at risk of a possible suspension in the Champions League.
Three yellow cards in the league phase of the prime competition will result in a one-match ban, with one Chelsea star currently walking a disciplinary tightrope. That player is Andrey Santos following cautions off the bench against Qarabag and Bayern Munich.
Joao Pedro has technically received two yellow cards but they both came on the same evening which led to his dismissal against Benfica. As such, he is only one booking for the European campaign so far.
A ban for Santos is unlikely to be seen as an immediate problem as he currently plays the understudy role to Moises Caicedo, but his display this past weekend against Burnley showed his ability. The Brazil international would be perfect to see out games or fill in for Caicedo if injury strikes.
The more immediate challenge, though, irrespective of suspension worries, will be overcoming Barca and adding another three points to the board. It’s a first meeting between the two sides in seven years, with plenty of changes occurring since that clash back in 2018 – where Barca ran out as 3-0 winners.
If Chelsea are to win, they will need to be at their very best with Maresca fully aware of that. He told the press before the game: “I think they’re spectacular, it’s a team that whenever I look at it there are things that can be learned.
“[There are] things that can be looked at, how they attack, how they defend, which in the end has given them the chance to win La Liga last year, to get to the Champions League semi-final.
“They do a lot of things very well and it’s a team that always wants initiative, always wants value and we try to do the same things on our side.”
