Levi Colwill has been dropped from the starting lineup for Chelsea’s clash against Real Betis in the UEFA Conference League final.
The 22-year-old defender fired the Blues to a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday afternoon, breaking the deadlock shortly after half-time.
With Everton beating Newcastle and Aston Villa losing to Manchester United, Chelsea finished the Premier League season in fourth place on 69 points. Thanks to Colwill, the west Londoners secured qualification for the UEFA Champions League following a two-year absence from the competition.
Despite his impressive performance at the weekend, the Cobham graduate has lost his place in Enzo Maresca’s side. Benoit Badiashile has replaced Colwill in the starting lineup, while Malo Gusto comes in for Reece James, Trevoh Chalobah replaces Tosin Adarabioyo and Jadon Sancho makes way for Nicolas Jackson.
“That is really, really interesting,” said Joe Cole on TNT Sports ahead of the Conference League final. “My eyes go to the centre-halves, [Trevoh] Chalobah and Badiashile together, I am not a big fan of mixing it.
“Levi Colwill has been playing very, very well. Tosin has come in and done okay as well. That is interesting, that really is. Reece James being on the bench as well, you know, experience on a big night.
“What you would say about Enzo is he’s got it spot on in every time he has mixed the teams. But listen you can’t pick a Chelsea team now, the squad is so strong you don’t know who is going to start. There are always going to be a few talking points.”
Steve Sidwell added: “I like Chalobah, I like that he has been brought back in. He’s got a bit of skill there and experience as well, but yeah I know what you meanm, those partnerships you want to keep them throughout the competition.”
When quizzed on his eyebrow-raising decisions, Maresca said: “Today has been a little bit complicated for the first XI but hopefully it is the right one.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday ahead of the highly anticipated clash, the Chelsea boss was asked about the impact of winning a major trophy. Maresca said: “I think it’s important for everyone.
“You can see the other day how happy they were, also celebrating on the pitch. It’s something normal, when you arrive, you are new, two, three years here, you invest money and finally you can reach something important.
“I think it’s also something good for them, for everyone. Hopefully tomorrow we can continue to win, them, the fans, the club in general, and other trophies.”
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