£20m Chelsea player has travelled with the squad to Panathinaikos, he’s only played once so far this season

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Chelsea have jetted out to Greece today ahead of Thursday evening’s match against Panathinaikos, and one rarely-seen player this season has travelled with the squad.

Chelsea are currently preparing for their second match of this season’s Conference League group stages.

The Blues recorded a 4-2 home win over Gent in their opening fixture of the group phase. The Chelsea Chronicle learned five things from the Gent victory.

Now, Enzo Maresca’s side face Greek opposition Panathinaikos this week in Athens.

• READ MORE: How to watch Panathinaikos vs Chelsea: The Blues’ toughest UEFA Conference League game

Carney Chukwuemeka travels with Chelsea group

Chelsea confirmed via their Instagram story on Wednesday afternoon that Carney Chukwuemeka has travelled to Greece ahead of the Panathinaikos clash. He’s been pictured sitting alongside Blues youngster Tyrique George on the plane.

Chukwuemeka, 21, has had a frustrating time recently. Remarkably, he’s only been involved in one matchday squad this campaign, where he did come off the bench and make his one appearance this season in the League Cup against Barrow last month.

Apparently, the attacking midfielder was meant to be in the squad earlier in October for the Blues’ Conference League win over Gent. Speaking via Chelsea’s official website, Maresca explained Chukwuemeka was absent against Gent due to illness.

Hopefully, we see him involved tomorrow versus Panathinaikos because he’s become a forgotten man recently.

Carney Chukwuemeka deserves minutes

It’s incredibly frustrating that Chukwuemeka hasn’t really had a look-in during the opening months of the 2024/25 campaign.

The £20m Englishman (Sky Sports) definitely has the talent to make an impact in Maresca’s XI, but we understand the competition for places is extremely tough.

If he gets a run of opportunities in the various cup competitions, we’re confident that Chukwuemeka can impress the head coach with both his physical and technical attributes from midfield. Therefore, it’ll be intriguing to see if he gets a second appearance of the season this week away to Panathinaikos.