Top News

Enzo Maresca explained his decision to substitute Estevao for Alejandro Garnacho to the entire Chelsea team during half time of their match against Arsenal. The switch was made with Chelsea reduced to 10 men in the first half, following Moises Caicedo's dismissal.

The Blues' midfielder was shown a red card for a bad challenge on Arsenal's Mikel Merino after just 36 minutes. With the score still at 0-0, Maresca altered his line-up for the second half, bringing on Garnacho in place of the lively Estevao.

As reported by the Daily Mail, during the half-time interval, the Chelsea manager informed Estevao of the substitution and explained his rationale to the entire squad in the dressing room. The change was intended to allow his side to maintain control despite being a man down.

This adjustment saw Pedro Neto shift from the left to the right wing, with Garnacho taking up position on the left. He was instructed to stay high and wide.

Full-back Malo Gusto was advised to hang back more to bolster the defence. Enzo Fernandez was then directed to drop deeper, with main striker Joao Pedro, and later Liam Delap, remaining further upfield.

In his final words to the team, Maresca is said to have urged them to 'double the effort'. The tactical reshuffle and motivational message quickly paid off.

Just three minutes into the second half, Trevoh Chalobah headed in a Reece James corner to put Chelsea ahead. Arsenal levelled the score in the 59th minute through Merino.

Despite Chelsea being a man down, both sides had chances to claim victory in the match, which finished 1-1. The result leaves Chelsea six points adrift of their rivals in the Premier League standings.

They now sit in third place, trailing second-placed Manchester City by a single point. After the final whistle, Maresca commended his squad for their display.

He said: "I think sometimes you have to be happy even with one point. For sure, the target was to win the game. Again, 11v11, I think we were a better team than them.

"We managed the game, we controlled the game, we created chances and we didn't concede anything. Then the red card changed a little bit the dynamic, but even with that, I think the way the players dealt with that and were outstanding."