Chelsea: Enzo Maresca to ring changes in Club World Cup quarter-final clash as key midfielder banned
The Club World Cup employs stringent discipline rules, with a one-match ban issued to any player who picks up two yellow cards before the quarter-final stage.
Advertisement
Chelsea confirmed their progression to the next round in the small hours of Sunday morning, downing Benfica 4-1 after extra time to set up a quarter-final meeting with Palmeiras.
They will be without the Ecuadorian midfielder Caicedo in that tie, though, after he picked up his second caution of the tournament, cited for dissent in the second half.
He may be grateful for the rest after appearing to have picked up a knock early in the match, but Chelsea could struggle without the £100million man marshalling the midfield.
His absence could open the door for the highly-rated Andrey Santos to make his full debut, though. The Brazilian rejoined Chelsea ahead of the tournament following a loan spell at Strasbourg, but has played just 23 minutes so far.
Advertisement
The Blues will be boosted in the quarter-finals, however, by the return of Nicolas Jackson. The Senegalese striker was sent off for a rash studs-up tackle mere minutes after his introduction in the second half of Chelsea's 3-1 group stage loss to Flamengo.
He saw his ban upgraded from one match to two, leaving him sidelined for a final group tie against ES Tunis and the Benfica clash, with Liam Delap impressing in his absence.
Seven other members of Maresca's squad could be suspended for the semi-final should they pick up a booking against Palmeiras.
Chief among them is Cole Palmer, who has impressed in the United States despite failing to find the back of the net in three appearances. He was booked for his involvement in the fallout which followed Gianluca Prestianni's red card.
Advertisement
Maresca could be forced into more attacking changes for the semi-final, too, as Delap and Pedro Neto are both one caution away from bans.
There could be a greater crisis in defence, where Marc Cucurella, Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo, and Reece James could all miss the semi-final with a yellow card against Palmeiras.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
PSG Target With Uncertain Real Madrid Future Atop Liverpool's List to Replace Luis Diaz
Rodrygo's future at Real Madrid remains uncertain after an inconsistent showing at the FIFA Club World Cup. Now that the transfer window is open, speculation around a possible move is starting to build. A previous report from Sports Zone indicated that Real Madrid no longer considers Rodrygo untouchable. His camp has reportedly held talks with Arsenal, Manchester City, and Liverpool. PSG are also in the mix, though they're said to be proceeding with more caution. More recently, TBR Football reported that Arsenal are becoming increasingly confident about their chances of signing the Brazilian. With the Club World Cup now over—and Rodrygo expected to make a decision after the tournament—we may soon get a better sense of what's next. Could PSG target be heading to Anfield?According to L'Équipe, Rodrygo is seen as a likely replacement for Luis Diaz if the Colombian ends up leaving Liverpool. Meanwhile, transfer insider Fabrizio Romano reported that Rodrygo is in a tricky situation. The Brazilian has a deep love for Real Madrid and feels he still has plenty to give, but he's also aware that he could have a bigger role elsewhere. Talks with Real Madrid are already underway, and the final decision now rests with him.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Vitor Roque steps up as Palmeiras beat Atlético-MG, Hulk scores a screamer
At Allianz Parque, Palmeiras defeated Atlético-MG 3-2 on Sunday (20), in the 15th round of the 2025 Brasileirão. Best moments coming soon - stay tuned Before the game started, Richard Ríos went onto the field to bid farewell to the Verdão fans. The Colombian midfielder is transferring to Benfica. After spending some time on the bench, Ríos returned to the locker room. When the ball rolled, Palmeiras was better in the game and controlled the actions. And, after coach Cuca substituted Gabriel Menino - ex-Verdão - and he went straight to the locker room - with 30 minutes of play, Piquerez took a corner kick on the first post, and Lucas Evangelista anticipated the marking to head the ball into Everson's foot and open the scoring for Palmeiras. However, still in the final stretch of the first half, Hulk took a perfect free kick from the edge of the box and tied the game. But, after the interval, Vitor Roque - taking 50kg off his back - completed the cross from the left in the area, the ball hit Junior Alonso and died in the back of Galo's goal. Tigrinho was also decisive in the third goal, when he stole the ball from Rômulo and served Facundo Torres in the area, who rolled it to the middle for Maurício to score the third. In stoppage time, Hulk scored another goal from a free kick for Galo and set the game on fire.🚦 How it stands With the victory, breaking a negative sequence of three rounds without wins, Palmeiras reached 26 points and rose to fourth place. Atlético-MG, which suffered its second consecutive defeat in the championship, remained with 20 points and in ninth place. Verdão returns to the field next Wednesday (23), when they visit Fluminense, at Maracanã, for the 16th round of the Brasileirão. Meanwhile, Galo hosts Atlético Bucaramanga, at Arena MRV, on Thursday (24), for the second leg of the Conmebol Sudamericana playoffs. Atlético-MG's next game will be only next Sunday (27), when they visit Flamengo, at Maracanã, for the 17th round. This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here. 📸 Ricardo Moreira - 2025 Getty Images
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
'Sensational' Chelsea player underrated for role in PSG win – it's not Gusto or Palmer
Chelsea's Club World Cup win over PSG was so impressive not just because of the trophy we got to lift afterwards, but also because of the standard of the performance against truly exceptional opposition. Key players and coach praised for dominant Chelsea win The Blues had to take on a PSG team which had carried all before them in all competitions this season, yet not only did Enzo Maresca's men come out on top, they actually dominated the whole game. The manager has had plenty of praise for his excellent tactics which undid the Parisians, and players like Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto have also had their flowers for some great performances. But on ESPN's post game show, Don Hutchison picked out another star who had played a major role in helping the Blues to a win – Moises Caicedo, who kept us his superb form in midfield. You can see them discussing the Ecuador star in the clip embedded here: 'Sensational' Caicedo helps Chelsea dominate midfield Moises Caicedo holds off Joao Neves. (Photo by) 'I thought Caicedo was sensational,' Hutchison said. 'Trying to stop that three man midfield of Paris Saint Germain, which I think is right up there with the best three midfielders [in the world] in their quality and way they complement each other.' We were really worried about the PSG midfield before the game. They had passed teams off the park all year, showing great composure on the ball and great energy to win it back when they lost it. But for whatever reason, in this game they just never looked interested, and couldn't get on Chelsea's level until the game was essentially already won. Huge credit for that has to go to Caicedo, who showed off all the best parts of his skillset to keep them at bay.
