Liam Rosenior confirms fresh Chelsea injury blow during 2-2 draw with Leeds
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Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior admitted that he was forced to substitute Marc Cucurella off at half-time because of an injury during Tuesday's 2-2 draw with Leeds United.
Rosenior made very few team changes in the last couple of games, and an injury, while still unfortunate, was always a possibility given the intensity of these games.
The Chelsea boss raised some eyebrows when he replaced Cucurella for Jorrel Hato at the start of the second half, especially after such a comfortable first half.
However, Rosenior made it clear that it was not a tactical change.
"Unfortunately, at half-time, he felt his hamstring," he said in his press conference when speaking about his decision to hook Cucurella at half-time.
"It wasn't a tactical change. It was one that was enforced and Cucu's been top, and hopefully he'll be OK.
"We'll scan him and make sure we find out if he's available for the next game."
Cucurella's absence in the second half likely played a part in Chelsea's poor defensive display in the second half.
Hato was not directly responsible for any of Leeds' two goals, but had Cucurella been on the pitch, Chelsea might have been able to deal with the visitors' attacks better.
In the last two games, Cucurella's workload has increased quite significantly.
Rosenior's decision to start Enzo Fernandez in a more advanced midfield role meant Chelsea did not start the game with a left-winger, often leaving Cucurella as the only player to provide width on the left side of the pitch.
On one hand, Chelsea controlled the middle of the pitch better with an additional midfielder, but on the flip side, Cucurella had to cover more of the pitch.
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.