Conor Gallagher set for new Chelsea role as Todd Boehly makes transfer plans amid FFP concerns
All of the talk post-match on Monday night was about that penalty incident despite Chelsea thumping Everton 6-0 on a near-perfect evening at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues ran riot in SW6 against a Toffees team that looked very poor throughout the game. Mauricio Pochettino was forced into a couple of changes following the injuries to Enzo Fernandez and Axel Disasi – but the Chelsea head coach got his team selection spot on.
Malo Gusto returned to the side for the injured Disasi, with Thiago Silva and Trevoh Chalobah continuing in the centre of defence for the Blues. Meanwhile, Mykhailo Mudryk replaced Enzo, with Conor Gallagher dropping into a deeper role to fill the void left by the Argentine's absence.
Gallagher, who has been used in the No.10 role for the majority of his time working under Pochettino, played alongside Moises Caicedo in a double pivot on Monday. In doing so, the England international excelled and has offered Pochettino a clear solution to a problem that has been bothering the head coach all season-long.
Between them, Fernandez and Caicedo have played well over 7000 minutes in all competitions this season. Because of Chelsea's injury situation, with Romeo Lavia and Lesley Ugochukwu long-term absentees, there have not been many opportunities for Pochettino to rotate the South American duo this term.
While there have always been question marks over what team Pochettino will field for each game, a double pivot of Caicedo and Fernandez has almost been a guarantee every match. But if he wasn't aware, Gallagher certainly showed his boss that he can also do a more than decent job in a deeper role.
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