“He’s not ready to start against Man city” “Poor him” – Enzo Maresca told to drop £58m Chelsea star after poor performance in 4-1 defeat to Celtic
The Blues had a forgettable second game during their preseason tour of the United States.
Chelsea had a very concerning defensive display as they fell 4-1 against Celtic. With a few passes over the top, Celtic’s offense was frequently in on goal.
Even with Reece James moving into the middle of the ground to boost the number of players there, the Blues’ midfield performance was lackluster.
Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, for example, did not participate. Romeo Lavia and Carney Chukwuemeka, on the other hand, began the game at midfield.
Lavia impressed Chelsea supporters during the Blues’ opening preseason matchup with Wrexham. However, they would not have been overly pleased with his performance against Celtic on Saturday.
Romeo Lavia struggled against Celtic
Lavia is a strong midfielder who is not afraid to drive with the ball and showed that a couple of times in the Celtic defeat.
However, his passing was not up to scratch on the day, while Chelsea’s midfield in general failed to show any kind of authority in the middle of the park.
Of course, you cannot ignore the fact that Lavia barely kicked a ball last season. It is understandable that the 20-year-old looked a bit rusty at times.
But it still shows that he is probably not ready to start for Enzo Maresca‘s side when they welcome Manchester City to Stamford Bridge on August 18.
Romeo Lavia not ready to start Manchester City game
Lavia could become a key player for Chelsea. He is still young and someone who they obviously have a lot of faith in.
The Blues paid Southampton £58m for Lavia’s signature last summer, so this is clearly a young midfielder who they believe in.
It may be too soon, though, for Lavia to start such a huge match against City, where everyone is going to need to be at their best if Chelsea are to take anything away from it.
Lavia needs to prove he has his sharpness back again, otherwise the Belgium international should not be included in Chelsea’s starting XI for their first Premier League game of the season.