Enzo Maresca has problems going into Chelsea’s game against Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.
His side are not in good form, losing their last two Premier League fixtures to Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion, while the Chelsea manager also has injuries.
Nicolas Jackson will be one absentee Tuesday night, with the striker yet to recover from a hamstring issue. It leaves Maresca with quite a dilemma, as Marc Guiu is sidelined as well, while Christopher Nkunku is struggling to fill the shoes of his teammate.
Cole Palmer’s influence has diminished, too, but he could solve the problem Maresca currently has up front.
Enzo Maresca should consider starting Cole Palmer as a nine against Southampton
Palmer‘s best position is at No.10, but the 22-year-old is so versatile. He can play on the right and even up front.
During his time at Manchester City’s academy, Maresca actually used Palmer as a No.9, something that the Italian has spoken about recently.
“We have players,” Maresca was quoted as saying by The Standard earlier this month when discussing how he plans to deal with the absence of Jackson. “Christo has played already as a nine. I had Cole playing as a nine in the past [in Manchester City’s youth set-up].”
While Maresca also name-checked Nkunku, who has managed to make a couple of starts in the Premier League since Jackson’s injury, he is not making the same kind of impact that the Senegal international does.
With that in mind, then, it could be time for Maresca to try Palmer up top. The former City player is Chelsea’s most potent forward, scoring 14 times in the top flight this term. It makes sense to put him closer to the goal, especially with Jackson not around.
Palmer playing behind Nkunku is not exactly working right now either. Gary Neville thought Palmer and Nkunku were hopeless together in the Blues’ 3-0 defeat to Brighton.
Change in position could rejuvenate Cole Palmer
Palmer has not looked happy recently, which is understandable amid his dip in form and Chelsea’s decline.
Keep this up, and the England international knows he and his teammates will miss out on Champions League qualification once again.
There was one moment during Chelsea’s loss against Villa where Palmer was really annoyed, which was the result of Nkunku not getting on the end of one of his passes — a pass he actually overhit in the Frenchman’s defence. On another afternoon, though, that ball probably reaches Nkunku’s boot and Chelsea get a shot on goal.
Palmer can create and score, but with the Blues missing their first-choice striker, Maresca should make him the No.9. Potentially getting more opportunities to find the back of the net, it is a role that Palmer would likely love, while there is no reason why he cannot drop deep and cause defences problems, too. It is something to think about if Maresca starts to lose trust in Nkunku.
