Overview
- Chelsea’s 3-1 loss at Leeds ended a seven-match unbeaten run and left them fourth in the Premier League, nine points behind leaders Arsenal.
- Enzo Maresca faced criticism for making five changes at Elland Road but said rotation is unavoidable, citing the need to manage Reece James, Pedro Neto, Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia.
- Caicedo is serving a three-match suspension with two games still to miss, while Lavia, Levi Colwill and Dario Essugo are injured, and Wesley Fofana was not in the squad at Leeds.
- Maresca said the team “did many things bad” at Leeds and suggested the hour with 10 men against Arsenal took a toll, adding he expects a similarly intense test at Bournemouth.
- Saturday’s trip to Bournemouth will be Chelsea’s fifth game in two weeks, and players who featured on Wednesday were not due to train before the match due to the tight turnaround.