Chelsea made some tweaks to their lineup today to face Aston Villa, and they’ve paid off right away.
We were wondering how Maresca’s changes would look, and as it turned out it was more than just Reece James in midfield. What wasn’t clear until kick off was that Pedro Neto was leading the line as a striker, while Christopher Nkunku played down the right.
Well it worked well from the off. Neto’s speed and desire to run in behind paid off when he broke the offside trap and played a cross for Enzo Fernandez to tap in.
Using James in midfield has freed up Enzo to play further forward, so really it was both tweaks combining to give us the lead. Neto through the middle has already worked better in 10 minutes than Nkunku leading the line did for 180 minutes against Brighton.
Now we just need to see if this switch helps Nkunku out too.
You can see the goal in the clip embedded here:
Moises Caicedo ➡️ Pedro Neto ➡️ Enzo Fernandez
What a start for Chelsea! 🔵⚡️ pic.twitter.com/4M9TU91tfQ
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 22, 2025
[Footage from Sky Sports]
ENZO WITH THE EARLY GOAL! 0-1 pic.twitter.com/dmB2F1WMWD
— Chels HQ (@Chels_HQ) February 22, 2025
[Footage from ViaPlaySport]
Caicedo adds another great moment to his highlight reel
Also deserving of great credit was Moises Caicedo. When he received the ball facing his own goal close to the edge of the box with Villa players closing in, even getting out of danger looked like it might be tricky.
Instead, not only made the right turn to shrug off defenders, he also spotted Neto’s run and picked him out with a long pass that really was the moment which broke the game open and created the goal. We believe that’s what Arsenal fans call a “pre assist.”
Once again, the Ecuador star has reminded us of how good he can be making attacking passes as well as breaking up play. What a great season he is having.
