ENZO MARESCA was already scratching his head over how best to handle the absence of Chelsea’s midfield dynamo Moises Caicedo.
But Leeds boss Daniel Farke threw another spanner in the works by switching to a back five against Manchester City.
That has left Maresca, whose Blues side head to Elland Road tonight, unsure which shape to prepare for.
And he fears that if he gets it wrong, then two days of tactical work will be “in the bin”.
The Chelsea boss knows his side must win games like this if they are to be considered serious title challengers.
With just 72 hours’ rest since battling to a 1-1 draw with Premier League leaders Arsenal, Maresca will be tempted to rotate his troops to stay fresh for a gruelling December.
That point against their London rivals on Sunday was all the more energy-sapping given that the hosts played with ten men from 38 minutes, after Caicedo was sent off for a studs-up lunge on Gunners midfielder Mikel Merino.
While Maresca must deal with a Caicedo-shaped hole in midfield, he can at least recall fit-again talisman Cole Palmer.
But the meticulous gaffer is more worried about the fact that he had no idea what formation Leeds would line up in.
Shifting from four to five at the back saw Farke’s side fight back from 2-0 down at City.
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While Leeds ultimately lost 3-2 to Phil Foden’s injury-time winner, Farke will surely be tempted to employ the same tactics.
Asked yesterday which system he would rather face, Maresca said: “I’d prefer to know. If we know, we can prepare.
“We played two days ago. We had a session yesterday and a session today. We used yesterday’s session with the ones that didn’t play against Arsenal.
“Today, we have a full team preparing the game. But we need to decide which shape we will prepare to play against — a back four or a back five.
“We spent yesterday and today against a back four. If they start the game with a back five, what we did yesterday goes in the bin. It’s rubbish. You don’t need it.
“This is the question now. It’s not easy. They have always played a back four. They switched to a back five, and they scored two; they could have won. What do they do now?”
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Even Etihad boss Pep Guardiola held a mid-game team-talk on how to deal with Leeds’ five-man defence — causing a “fake injury” storm as keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma hit the deck with an issue that was accused of being a ruse to buy City the time to regroup.
Chelsea have suffered against sides that sit deep without the ball.
Against a low block of five defenders, Maresca might fancy a bit of stardust from the likes of Palmer and Estevao Willian.
Hard-working wingers like Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho may be more effective if Farke picks a back four.
Maresca added: “The way we prepare the game depends on how they play.
“If they are a back four, you need a shape with different players. Against five, you need another game plan.
“That is always harder without Moises, Cole, and Levi Colwill. But we will try to find different solutions.”
Chelsea’s abundance of talent means Andrey Santos is likely to step into midfield for Caicedo, while Maresca also name-checked Malo Gusto and Josh Acheampong as players who can fill the void, with Reece James also proving effective in the middle.
He said: “With Reece, it’s complicated. I’d like to start him, but we need to do the right thing. Andrey is ready. His position, once again, is playing as a six, like Moi’s position. But he’s ready.
“We have more options. Acheampong can play well in that position.”
Maresca said Dario Essugo, signed to be Caicedo’s deputy, suffered a setback in his recovery from a thigh injury sustained in September.
The 20-year-old, who signed in a £18.5million deal from Sporting in the summer, has not been able to make any real impact for the Blues since joining.
And while fans hoped this would be a chance for him to establish a place in the squad — after he seemed to be back with the group — Maresca ruled him out of the next three games entirely.
He confirmed: “Essugo is not available for the next three games.
“We need to check him, as he had a setback yesterday.
“Unfortunately, it was just yesterday, so I don’t know how serious it is.
“The positive part, yeah, is that Moises gets a rest. He’s playing every game, also with the international team, so this break will give him a little bit more rest.
“Next Tuesday we have a Champions League game, so he’s going to be available for Atalanta in one week — but it’s a chance for him also to recover.”
