Mauricio Pochettino jokingly mentioned that had he chosen to rest Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo in the match against Arsenal, Chelsea’s owners might have taken extreme measures.
The midfield duo, Fernandez and Caicedo, had returned from international duty, representing Argentina and Ecuador, just early on Wednesday morning.
Pochettino acknowledged the wisdom of gradually reintroducing this £222 million midfield pairing to the lineup.
However, he also recognized that this wasn’t a viable option for the highly-anticipated London derby scheduled for Saturday.
“It’s crazy for players to come back from South America on Wednesday and play on Saturday,” Pochettino said [via The Standard].
“But if I say ‘OK, I’m going to give them a rest’ you will kill me, for sure if they don’t play – and the owner also!
“Today Caceido and Enzo arrived after two games in America and they were not fresh. But they are important players for us. It’s really tough to arrive like that.
“I hope now they can recover and train and in one week be at their best.”
The Blues marked their return from the international break with a thrilling match at Stamford Bridge over the weekend.
Chelsea initially took a two-goal lead, courtesy of Mykhailo Mudryk’s fortuitous cross and Cole Palmer’s successful penalties.
However, Mikel Arteta’s team staged a comeback, leveling the score.
Declan Rice capitalized on a mistake by Robert Sanchez to halve the deficit, and then substitute Leandro Trossard found the back of the net, securing a valuable point and maintaining their flawless Premier League record.
With Chelsea not participating in European competitions this season, they have a midweek break to allow their players some rest and recovery.
They are set to face Brentford on Saturday, October 28.