Chelsea will need to temporarily turn their attention to European football as they prepare for the Conference League semi-final first leg against Djurgarden.
The Blues picked up a huge win at Stamford Bridge against Everton when Enzo Maresca was not on the sidelines, however he’ll be back in charge for this week’s trip to Sweden.
The expectation is that Chelsea have too much quality for any other side in this competition, and the Italian is likely to rotate his side to allow the likes of Tyrique George a start.
Maresca will be hoping for a far better performance than their last game in the Conference League, where they were defeated by Legia Warsaw and booed off the pitch as a result.
Enzo Maresca worries as Chelsea prepare for artificial pitch in Conference League
The boss will be hoping for a comfortable evening against their semi-final opponents, with no doubt one eye at least on the huge Premier League game against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.
Their task may well have been made a fair bit harder as a result of the pitch that they will be playing on for the first leg of the tie.
According to the Mail Online, the Blues will be competing on an artificial surface, which has even drawn complaints from Djurgarden players due to the lack of quality.
Chelsea have been worrying about golden boy Estevao Willian as he continues to play on artificial turf before he moves to Stamford Bridge, with those fears stemming from their own bad experiences.
Former Chelsea player saw career ruined by artificial turf
As Chelsea were gearing up for a Europa League final against Arsenal back in 2019, they took part in a mid-season charity friendly in the United States.
After playing on a synthetic pitch, Ruben Loftus-Cheek suffered a serious injury which forced him off, ending what had been his breakout season in the process.
The England international never reached the same heights after this when he returned, with him eventually moving on to AC Milan.
Chelsea will know better than anyone the risks of playing on these surfaces, and therefore extra care will almost certainly be taken with players such as Reece James, who have unfortunate injury records up to now.
