Ben Chilwell had already been sorted out by Chelsea FC, but on Tuesday he was on the pitch and even wore the captain’s armband. This meant that his coach did not make a threat come true.
Ben Chilwell had already been a European vice-champion and Champions League winner, on Tuesday he was just happy to play against AFC Barrow. In the commanding 5-0 win for Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the third round of the League Cup against the fourth division side, the left-back was on the pitch in the second half, when he was not supposed to have entered it at all.
In the summer, he was one of a very large group of players that Chelsea wanted to get rid of and one of a very small group that stayed. “It wasn’t easy for him,” said coach Enzo Maresca after the Barrow game, which was a pretty understatement. Although he had only extended his contract until 2027 a little over a year earlier and was promoted to vice-captain shortly afterwards, Maresca had publicly suggested a move to him for the first time on August 17.
Maresca’s message was clear – actually
Like many others, Chilwell was no longer allowed to train with the first team and thus with Maresca. The pressure that Mauricio Pochettino’s successor – certainly with the blessing of the bosses – increasingly put on those who had been left out culminated shortly before “Deadline Day” in the threat that none of those who still did not move would play a single minute this season.
Chilwell’s comeback on Tuesday evening should not have happened. For the 27-year-old England international, who had recently returned to team training as a first step in his reintegration, it was his first appearance since the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City (1-0) on April 20, when he suffered a knee injury. He had therefore missed the last few games under Pochettino.
“Chilly did very well,” the Italian praised his returnee. “He showed that he is there, that he is ready, that he works well. There is no problem at all, and if we have an opportunity, we will give him more minutes.” Should Chilwell suddenly want to leave in the winter or summer, Maresca probably wouldn’t have any objections either.
