Maresca must upgrade Chelsea star 4/10

Chelsea managed to ease past Morecambe in the FA Cup third round, despite only leading 1-0 at half-time at Stamford Bridge. Tosin Adarabio’s deflected shot in the first half was the only difference between the sides, after Christopher Nkunku saved a penalty.

Goals from Nkunku, João Félix (x2) and Adarabio made it 5-0 in the second half, and half-time substitutes Malo Gust, Marco Cucurella and Jadon Sancho improved the overall performance in that second half.

Enzo Maresca page held 81% of the propertyhe took 28 shots in the game and created four big chances in the game, although there were mixed results.

Tosha’s performance against Morecambe

It was a stunning goal from Adarabioyo that grabbed the headlines, as the centre-back scored twice from outside the box, having been given space to shoot into on both occasions by Morecambe’s deep defensive line.

27 year old scored two goalshe made one clearance, one block and one interception. He also won all four of his aerial duels and completed 93% of his passes with 107 touches in the game.

Adarabioyo’s role in this game was extremely important, with Morecambe dropping so deep, there was room for him to get forward, either pulling the opposition forward towards him to make space for his defensive partner (Axel Disasi) or pushing them even deeper, making room for those distant chances.

Despite the good play of Adarabio and a few others, especially in the first half, Chelsea fans had a lot to be desired. One person who didn’t leave his mark on the game was Marc Guiu, who started in attack in place of Nicolas Jackson.

Why Chelsea need an upgrade on Guiu

Guiu was awarded a Match rating 4/10 by GOAL for his performance, he managed just 11 touches in the game, with nine completions.

The 19-year-old forward signed from Barcelona this summer for a a fee of around £5 millionalready made 12 appearances for the Blues since joining, scoring six goals.

The statistics confirmed the fact that Guiu felt anonymous in the game, while Filip Jorgensen had more touches (29) but the attacker. As usual, the Spanish youngster tried hard, led duels all over the field, but unfortunately lost all four duels (both ground and air).

Guiu completed 100% of his passes (nine out of nine) but the Morecambe defense easily dealt with most of his involvement. This was a game where Guiu had the chance to keep knocking on the door for more Premier League substitute minutes, but a lack of engagement could actually force Maresca to look for another striker.

While Guiu has shown signs in his short stay at Chelsea so far, he is clearly a raw talent who needs time and minutes to develop, which could mean a loan is the best fit for his development plan at the moment.

Therefore, as has been suggested for some time, the Blues should acquire another forward option, as an upgrade on Guia, to challenge Jackson.

Thankfully, at least Guiu’s problems were overshadowed by the brilliance of Tosino and company, with the Blues eventually managing to make the fourth round.