At Stamford Bridge today, Chelsea are in what seems a unique situation. When looking for creativity, instead of turning to an attacking player, they look to their right-back.
Reece James has revolutionised how Chelsea attack, adding elite crossing and finishing to a skillset which includes his defensive brilliance.
Not too long ago though, the Blues found themselves in a similar situation.
Albeit they had the brilliant Eden Hazard in their ranks, they were finding similar amounts of joy from one of their defenders in the 2016/17 season.
Cesar Azpilicueta, fresh from being one of the best players in a title winning campaign, had developed a real addiction to setting up goals as the Blues looked to defend their crown.
He had found his partner in crime too, with new signing at the time Alvaro Morata getting to grips with his compatriot very quickly.
Azpilicueta and Morata link up
At the start of November, Azpilicueta already had five assists to his name that had been converted by Morata.
Last night, Spain fans saw the combination in full force again.
A sensational cross by the Chelsea captain was given the nod of approval to give Luis Enrique’s side the lead.
They were unable to hold on however, eventually falling to a 2-1 defeat to Japan, and to second in the group.
Spanish media were critical of the decision to replace Azpilicueta at half-time, with him being one of the better performers and the score at 1-0.
They may feel slightly blessed at what went on in the group they were paired with. Them finishing second in the group has set up a game against Hakim Ziyech’s Morocco in the next round.
Both Azpilicueta and Morata have made their cases to start in the knockout round, with them both not being the first choice option at all times this campaign.
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