Enzo Maresca should start ‘outstanding’ Chelsea star in different position vs West Ham after injury news

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Chelsea take on West Ham United at the London Stadium later, looking for their third consecutive away win in the Premier League.

Last time out, Chelsea beat Bournemouth 1-0, with Christopher Nkunku winning the game late on for Enzo Maresca‘s side.

The Blues had quite a few absentees that day because of injury, including Malo Gusto.

Gusto will also miss the West Ham fixture, which means Axel Disasi could fill in at right-back again. However, Maresca should use another Chelsea star there instead.

• READ MORE: £39m Chelsea player showed Enzo Maresca he can only play in one position after Bournemouth win

Marc Cucurella should start at right-back

Disasi did not put in the best performance against Bournemouth last weekend, struggling to cope with the Cherries’ threat down the left.

As per Sofascore, the central defender was dribbled past twice and failed to make a single tackle.

Just after the hour mark, Disasi was taken off and replaced by Tosin Adarabioyo. With Gusto still out and Reece James also unavailable, the Frenchman could continue there.

However, considering Marc Cucurella is a full-back and actually played at right-back at times last season, the 26-year-old could be a more sensible choice.

Which Chelsea player will start at right-back against West Ham?

Cucurella moving to right-back for the West Ham game should not hurt Chelsea too much. Renato Veiga could easily slot in at left-back and do a job for Maresca this afternoon.

Veiga has impressed for Chelsea since his arrival from Basel in the summer. Also per Sofascore, the 21-year-old won five ground duels against Bournemouth last Saturday, though he was playing in midfield.

All in all, Maresca can probably trust Cucurella in the right-back position, given his overall quality. “He was absolutely outstanding,” Phil Thompson said about Cucurella after his display in the Euro 2024 final.

However, after managing to beat Bournemouth, Maresca may stick with the full-back combo of Cucurella and Disasi, while Veiga drops down to the bench following Enzo Fernandez’s return. If so, then the France international has to do much better this time around, otherwise it could be a long afternoon for Chelsea.