Marc Cucurella has revealed he was really happy for his “close friend” Enzo Fernandez after his performance in the win against Leicester.
The Blues ran out 2-1 winners at the King Power Stadium thanks to goals from Nicolas Jackson and Fernandez to ensure they remained in third place in the league.
With Manchester City losing to Tottenham it means the gap to Pep Guardiola’s men in second has closed to just one point.
Cucurella really happy for Fernandez
Fernandez was restored to the starting line-up against the Foxes for the first time since early October with Enzo Maresca preferring him to Romeo Lavia.
The Argentine has found himself on the bench for the last few games with Marescsa opting to play the Belgian alongside Moises Caicedo.
Fernandez sent a timely reminder to his manager of the quality he possesses as he turned in a man of the match performance as he assisted Jackson for the opener and scored the all important second goal.
The World Cup winner also covered the most ground out of anyone on the pitch, which is all the more impressive considering he only arrived back from South America on Thursday.
It’s been a difficult season for Fernandez but he’s still got a very important role to play as Chelsea look to return to the Champions League.Joe Cole was impressed with the 23-year-old and claimed the Leicester midfield couldn’t get near him, and Cucurella revealed he was also delighted for his team-mate.
“I’m really happy for him,” he told Chelsea’s website.
“We are close friends and I think he deserves it. He’s a top professional and he’s had a few games when he didn’t start, but he worked hard and he deserved this game. He played really well and this is football.”
Chelsea face another two games this week starting with Heidenheim in the Conference League on Thursday before a huge game against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Fernandez has done his chances of starting against Villa no harm, but it will be interesting to see if Maresca decides to go with Lavia or stick with the Argentina international.