Moises Caicedo must serve a three-match ban in the Premier League following his red card in Chelsea’s clash against Arsenal
Enzo Maresca already has a contingency plan in place to navigate the absence of Moises Caicedo. The Chelsea midfielder will miss the next three Premier League games due to suspension after he was shown a red card for ‘serious foul play’ during the 1-1 draw against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Sunday evening.
The Blues will be without Caicedo when they face Leeds United at Elland Road, Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium, and Everton at Stamford Bridge. However, the 24-year-old will be available for selection when Chelsea lock horns with Atalanta at the New Balance Arena in the UEFA Champions League next week.
Caicedo has established himself as a key player under Maresca. So much so that before last week’s win over Burnley at Turf Moor, he had started in each of the west Londoners’ games in the English top-flight, winning 26 out of 49 games.
While Chelsea will certainly miss the Ecuador international, Maresca has the opportunity to take his side to the next level – just as he did in the absence of Cole Palmer. So, with that being said, football.london has looked at how the Blues boss will navigate Caicedo’s suspension.
Caicedo gets a long-overdue rest
First and foremost, Caicedo will get a long-overdue rest. Since Chelsea signed the Ecuadorian from Brighton for £115million in August 2023, he’s played almost 10,000 minutes of club football – 9,567 to be exact, according to Transfermarkt.
Caicedo has also been a staple for his country, featuring in all but five of their various World Cup qualifiers, Copa America clashes, and international friendlies. Worryingly, the midfielder has begun to feel the effects of his labour.
In a recent interview with The Daily Mail, Caicedo revealed: “I feel pain sometimes. I’ve been playing with pain but I’m not going to stop until I break. I never give up. I get used to playing like this.”
Santos steps up to the plate
Andrey Santos, whom Chelsea signed from Vasco da Gama for just £18million in January 2023, won man of the match when he was deployed in Caicedo’s role for the first time in the Premier League. The 21-year-old midfielder stole the show when the Blues defeated Burnley at Turf Moor last weekend, diving into tackles, intercepting passes and recycling possession.
“With us, most of the time he plays a little bit higher, a little bit in the pocket,” said Maresca after the game. “But it’s because in that position we have Moises, so we try to find solutions, space for Andrey. We are aware, and we know that Andrey’s position is the position that he played today.”
At no point during the clash did Maresca send Caicedo to get warmed up, which was perhaps the biggest compliment he could have paid Santos. The youngster caught the eye again a couple of days later when Chelsea stormed past Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League.
Santos passed his audition for the ‘Caicedo role’. His dress rehearsal went down like a treat. Now it’s time to take centre stage when the lights shine brightest.
Forgotten Chelsea star returns to action
Fortunately for Maresca, Dario Essugo also recently returned to training. The 20-year-old midfielder, whom Chelsea signed from Sporting CP for £18million in the summer, was brought in to deputise for Caicedo, but he suffered a nasty hamstring injury in September.
Essugo required surgery, and he’s missed the entirety of the season so far. As it stands, it remains to be seen when the Portugal Under-21s will exactly return to action, but he could quickly become a key player in the coming weeks.
Lavia closes in on a return
Romeo Lavia could also return to action this month. The 21-year-old midfielder was forced to come off in the opening minutes of Chelsea’s draw to Qarabag at the start of last month due to a muscle injury.
Maresca’s controversial plan takes shape
If neither Essugo nor Lavia can shoulder some of the workload this month, Maresca can always count on Reece James. Back in March, the Chelsea boss claimed that he’s always viewed his captain as a midfielder.
Maresca’s comments divided opinion at the time, but James’ performance against Arsenal proved that there was method to the madness. A month or so later, speaking to the BBC, the Italian added that the right-back’s transition to the middle of the park also part of a plan to protect him from injury.
