Enzo Fernandez was the marquee signing for Chelsea in January. It was a slow start for him at Stamford Bridge, due to the uncertainty at the club and the overall malaise. However, it was always likely that he would come to the fore under compatriot Mauricio Pochettino. On Sunday, he was arguably the man of the match against Liverpool in a new more advanced role.
Chelsea have been determined in their attempts to sign Moises Caicedo from Brighton and Hove Albion. The last week has been farcical in the transfer market, as Chelsea and Liverpool have pushed the prices up for both Caicedo and Romeo Lavia. Although they will be disappointed they have had to pay more for the Ecuador international, they are set to land their main target. The reason why they want him is to free Fernandez.
With the pending signing of Caicedo, Pochettino didn’t see fit to wait for him to join before using Fernandez in a more advanced role. He was excellent against Liverpool and got better as the game went on. Liverpool were the better team for the first period of the game, but Chelsea quickly got control of the game and their World Cup winner was central to that.
Everything was going through him, as Fernandez attempted 94 passes and completed 90% of them. He made two key passes and looked to be a creative force with his forward passes. The 22-year-old can control the tempo of the game and Liverpool struggled to pin him down. Only the two Chelsea centre-backs attempted more passes than Fernandez.
In transition, Fernandez is really effective. Everything was running through him and he was injecting pace into the build-up for Chelsea. He completed two dribbles and looked to be positive with every action.
Last season, Fernandez was used in a deeper role. Although he can be used there, it doesn’t bring the best out of him. He isn’t the cleanest ball winner and could be rash in the tackle. That was evident again on Sunday, as he only successfully won one of his three tackles. Pochettino has clearly seen that the midfielder is wasted as a defensive midfielder and doesn’t want to use him there.
Conor Gallagher was the player asked to partner Fernandez. He was the one dropping deep to collect the ball from the defence. It wasn’t the perfect fit, but he did get better as the game went on.
Chelsea didn’t look balanced in the midfield areas. During the early part of the game, they struggled to deal with Liverpool’s runners. Caicedo could have a transformative impact on the team.
The main beneficiary will be Enzo Fernandez. He will be given license to be even more attacking in his positioning if he has a quality defensive midfielder partnering him. It has been a joyless pursuit of the Brighton midfielder. Chelsea have been forced to pay more than they would have liked.
That all said, if he comes into the team and helps Pochettino unleash Fernandez. It could be the signing that helps Chelsea get back into the top four.
