Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher looked awkward at times during Sunday’s cup win over Leicester City.
That is according to BBC pundit Martin Keown.
Chelsea left it until stoppage time this afternoon to wrap up a dramatic 4-2 victory at home to Leicester in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side highlighted their inconsistency this season within an up and down cup tie, but eventually their Premier League quality shone through.
Marc Cucurella, Cole Palmer, Carney Chukwuemeka and Noni Madueke were all on the scoresheet for the hosts at Stamford Bridge.
Conor Gallagher has been one of Chelsea’s rare excellent performers over the course of the season so far, but he had one of his off-days this weekend.
The 24-year-old’s been thriving as an attacking midfielder in the No 10 role, but he dropped into a deeper spot to form a pivot alongside Moises Caicedo against Leicester.
In the opinion of Keown, Gallagher looked far less effective and a bit shaky as part of the central midfield pairing.
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“Conor Gallagher playing in that deeper role today not necessarily that comfortable,” Keown told BBC One (2:10pm, 17 March)
“We often see him pressing and harrying people. [Enzo] Fernandez is usually at the bottom of that structure for Chelsea.”
Conor Gallagher against Leicester
We agree Gallagher’s much better suited to playing as an advanced midfielder that can roam in the opposition’s half.
Enzo Fernandez missed the cup tie through suspension on Sunday, but there’s not many alternatives in the squad.
Gallagher’s now linking up with Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the international break. Our concern for the Three Lions is they’ve got too many attacking midfielders, so they may need Gallagher to cover and play a deeper role.
