On Thursday evening, Chelsea host FC Noah in matchday three of the Europa Conference League.
Heading into the game, Enzo Maresca's Blues are two wins out of two in Europe, having previously beat Belgian outfit Gent 4-2 and Greek side Panathinaikos 4-1.
Meanwhile, Noah, who hail from Armenia and were only founded in 2017, have won one and lost one.
They beat Czech side FK Mlada Boleslav 2-0 in their opening game, but then lost 1-0 to 32-time Austrian champions Rapid Wien on matchday two.
Despite their recent defeat to Wien and their general inexperience in Europe, Maresca knows that Noah won't be pushovers.
"We need to be ready tactically but also mentally," the Italian coach told the press on Wednesday. "It is a team that in their country, they play different shapes so we don't know how they will come here and play."
"In today's football, you can find a good player, a good squad, a good manager everywhere, not only in the most important league in Europe or the world. In this kind of country, you can find important things and for sure, they have some good players also," he said.
Ahead of Thursday's clash, Everything Chelsea has listed three things that Maresca must do for the game.
Not play Axel Disasi at right-back
Axel Disasi has played at right-back on a number of occasions for Chelsea this term, including in both of the Blues' Europa Conference League games.
The position does not suit him.
Standing at 6'2" tall, the Frenchman is too cumbersome to play on the right-side of Chelsea's defence, lacking the speed and agility to get up-and-down the way Malo Gusto and Reece James do. He's also not all that great with the ball at his feet, especially under pressure.
In Chelsea's recent 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United, not only did Disasi score an own-goal, he also lost possession a massive 11 times.
Where he does excel is at centre-back. He's big, strong, reads the game reasonably well, and though he's still expected to play out, is under much less pressure and hence makes fewer mistakes.
Against Noah, Maresca must not play Disasi at right-back, and should instead play him where he's most comfortable.
Start Carney Chukwuemeka
Last season, Carney Chukwuemeka was one of Chelsea's most outstanding young players. This term, however, he's barely gotten a sniff under Maresca, playing just 27 minutes of football in all competitions.
But with a number of Chelsea's other midfielders now struggling, notably Enzo Fernandez and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Chukwuemeka should be given a chance to step-up against Noah.
A skilful, athletic, and intelligent midfielder, the Englishman is a terrific talent, however, without minutes, he won't improve, or perhaps even stay at the club.
There are plenty of other clubs interested in Chukwuemeka, including AC Milan, where he would no doubt shine if given the chance. Just look at Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fikayo Tomori, and even Christian Pulisic.
Rest Jadon Sancho
Jadon Sancho has enjoyed a solid start to life at Chelsea. Though he's yet to find the net for his new club, he's registered three assists and generally impressed with his excellent dribbling skills and link-up with Marc Cucurella on the left flank.
The Englishman, however, who missed the weekend's draw with Manchester United due to being ineligible to play against his parent club, is currently recovering from both an illness and a knock he suffered in training this week.
"Jadon is recovering from illness but he also had a knock in a session," Maresca said Wednesday. "Tomorrow he is out but we will see if he can be available for Sunday’s game, otherwise it will be after the international break for him."
Given Sancho's ropey injury record, there is no need for Maresca to rush the Englishman back. The Italian should give time ample time to recover. And besides, Mykhailo Mudryk played on the left in Chelsea's last Europa Conference League outing against Panathinaikos and was excellent, assisting two and scoring one.
How Chelsea should line-up versus Noah
Here is how Everything Chelsea thinks the Blues should line-up against Noah:
Predicted starting XI: Jorgensen; James, Disasi, Tosin, Veiga; Casadei, Chukwuemeka, Enzo; Felix, Nkunku, Mudryk.
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