Predicted Chelsea starting XI vs Wrexham as Mauricio Pochettino ponders six debuts
Mauricio Pochettino must whittle his 29-man squad down to just 11 players as he picks his first team as Chelsea head coach in North Carolina
He said: "We are working hard to build the physical condition first and after to develop a way to play and it is important to see if the young players are ready to play if they are ready to compete for a place in the future and to help the team work this season. It's a good opportunity for these guys to show us if they are ready."
Chelsea's open training session only served to reinforce the point as Pochettino worked with a group of 11 players against stationary training equipment to work on their build-up play and recovery. It appeared very possible that the group could take to the field for the opening whistle of the match against Brentford.
In front of him, Pochettino is without Benoit Badiashile and Wesley Fofana, the latter of which has ruptured his ACL and already undergone surgery. That saw a partnership of Trevoh Chalobah and Bashir Humphreys take to the pitch at Wakemed Soccer Park.
Malo Gusto and Marc Cucurella flanked the backline with under-19 World Cup captains Cesare Casadei and Andrey Santos at the base of midfield. The latter duo were tasked with picking the ball up from deep positions to kick start Chelsea moves in the training session.
Ahead of them was Carney Chukwuemeka with Diego Moreira and Ian Maatsen in the wide positions. Nicolas Jackson is expected to start up front as Pochettino ponders handing out six debuts to start the game.
Predicted Chelsea XI: Cumming, Gusto, Chalobah, Humphreys, Cucurella, Santos, Casadei, Moreira, Chukwuemeka, Maatsen, Jackson.
Which of the following prospects would you like to see in the first team, or loaned out for experience? Swipe
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