Chelsea will play Panathinaikos at the Olympic Stadium (not that stadium) in just under an hour, and we’ll have a team!
There will be some changes to tonight’s regular Conference League line-up, as the perfect A and B team rotation has been disrupted after changes were forced against Liverpool at the weekend.
In goal, as expected, was Filip Jorgensen. Robert Sanchez continues to look a bit dodgy, but the Swede knows he has a significant chance to make a good impression here.
The final line is likely to consist of Marc Cucurella at right-back, Renato Veiga at left-back, and Benoît Badiashile and Axel Disassi in the centre. We expect Cucurella to be taken off fairly early in the game to stay fresh for this Sunday.
In midfield, Enzo Fernandes, who was absent from the match against Liverpool, started. He is expected to play for at most 60 minutes. Next to him is Keenan Dewsbury-Hall, with Joao Felix filling Cole Palmer’s usual number 10 role.
Up front, Myhailo Mudryk and Pedro Neto flank Christopher Nkunku. The French star cannot be content with just starting in these minor games. The pressure continues with another goal tonight.
There are several conclusions that can be drawn from this whole selection – as we saw against Liverpool last week, Maro Gusto will start at left-back against Newcastle on Sunday, with Reece James at right-back. Does that mean he starts at full-back? Does this mean Jadon Sancho retains his spot rather than Neto jumping ahead of him in the pecking order?
Will Enzo be left out of the first team, leaving Romeo Lavia in the midfield as Moises Caicedo’s main partner? I don’t know, but there’s a lot to think about now that the normal order has been disrupted.
Click here for the full team lineup for Panathinaikos vs. Chelsea (kick-off 17:45 Japan time)
