“Should have started”, “How hard is that” - Chelsea fans unhappy with Enzo Maresca for not naming 2 players in line-up vs Manchester United

Chelsea fans on X (formerly Twitter) are not happy with Enzo Maresca's starting XI for their game against Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday, September 20. Many believe that Andrey Santos and Alejandro Garnacho should have started the match.

Maresca has picked Robert Sanchez in goal once again, with Reece James starting at right-back and Marc Cucurella keeping his spot at left-back. Trevoh Chalobah has a new partner as Wesley Fofana starts in the middle of the defence ahead of Tosin Adarabioyo.

Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez are the midfielders again, with Cole Palmer starting in front of them in the attacking role. Estevao Willian has a spot in the starting XI at the right wing, with Pedro Neto on the left and Joao Pedro leading the attack.

The starting XI is as expected, but many believe Maresca should have started Garnacho at his former club and also handed Andrey Santos a start ahead of Enzo Fernandez. They posted:

Chelsea signed Alejandro Garnacho from Manchester United in the summer for a reported £40 million deal. The winger has played two matches, both off the bench, and is yet to score or assist for his new side.

Enzo Maresca admitted Alejandro Garnacho was ready to start for Chelsea

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca spoke to the media ahead of the Manchester United clash in the Premier League, saying that Alejandro Garnacho was ready to make the starting XI. He is happy with the Argentine star's quick adjustment at his new club and said (via club website):

"In the last two games, he came on and was very good in the second half against Brentford and Bayern Munich. We are happy with the way he has adapted to our style and what we want from our wingers. Now is he ready to start? I think he is ready to start."

"It’s something you have to think about. He’s young so you don’t know how he’ll react. In case we decide to start with him, we’ll have a chat with him to see how he feels about that. It can work both ways. We had a similar case with Jadon [Sancho] last year who for different reasons struggled, then he joined us for one season and was good. He helped us achieve our target. Jadon had a good season with us, and hopefully Ale Garnacho can have the same."

Alejandro Garnacho played 144 matches for the Manchester United first team, scoring 26 goals and assisting 22 times.

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Sripad is a veteran Sportskeeda football journalist who has been with the company for around 10 years. His tryst with writing happened in class XI when he started penning blogs, and his foray into football was during the early 2000s, watching matches with his cousins.

Sripad has been a Chelsea fan through and through since the age of 9 and can watch their 2012 Champions League triumph on repeat. The undisputed ‘GOAT’ according to him is Lionel Messi and his favorite managers are Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson. Apart from popular European leagues, he also likes to follow other leagues like the MLS, Saudi Pro League, Eredivisie, and Liga MX.

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If given a chance to change a football rule, Sripad wants VAR to be fully automated and offside rules to be less stringent. When not working, he likes to watch past Formula 1 races and play FIFA.

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Edited by Sripad