The absence of Fernandez from the starting lineups of recent games has captured the interest of many people. The topic has been addressed by Coach Maresca, who has shared his perspective on the function of the midfielder as well as his tactical approach, which can explain Fernandez’s limited appearances.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has insisted he still retains complete faith in midfielder Enzo Fernandez, despite dropping the Argentina international to the bench recently.

Fernandez was dropped from Chelsea’s starting lineup for the 2-1 defeat to Liverpool on October 20 and has been part of what has been known as the ‘cup squad’ – the second unit used in the Conference League and Carabao Cup – ever since.

In Fernandez’s latest outing, the 2-0 cup defeat to Newcastle United, Maresca appeared to show real frustration towards the £106.8m signing after a poor pass, although the Chelsea boss did not seem to remember when questioned during Friday’s press conference.

“I showed frustration with Enzo? I show frustration with all of them,” he said. “Don’t only look at Enzo. I still trust Enzo; there is not one reason in the world to lose confidence in him.

“The reason why he is not playing in the Premier League is because in this moment, I take different decisions. But my confidence is 100% with Enzo.”

Asked whether Fernandez is no longer seen as undroppable, Maresca once again reaffirmed his faith in the under-fire midfielder.

“I like to say that we have, as I said, we don’t have an ‘A team’ or ‘B team’,” he explained. “There are players that are fantastic players but for me, we don’t have indispensable players. If Cole [Palmer], for whatever reason, is not playing, then we have Joao [Felix]. If Nico [Jackson] is not playing, we have Christo [Nkunku].

“The reason we change players is because we think all the players are good. Some of them, for sure, are better than the rest but it doesn’t mean they are always going to play. In this moment, I know you are looking for some different reasons for Enzo. But for Enzo, it’s very simple; he is not playing in this moment but we have so many games in the future. He is not playing but it doesn’t mean he is not going to play tomorrow or in two days or that Romeo [Lavia] and Moi [Caicedo] are going to.”

He continued: “First of all, it is a matter of balance. I think in this moment, Romeo and Moi give us physicality and strength in the middle. This is the reason why we found the option of Malo [Gusto] in the pocket. Otherwise, if we play with Enzo, it has to be Enzo and one between Moi and Romeo and when Enzo moves, we probably struggle in the middle in terms of physicality.

“It doesn’t mean in one game we cannot play with Cole and Joao in the pocket. It depends on the game. Probably soon we are going to see Joao and Cole together in the pocket with a striker. It’s always the game that requires a different plan.”