Antonio Conte has decided to rest his superstars including Eden Hazard and Diego Costa for the pivotal FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur. The Italian opted to hand a rare start to Michy Batshuayi – who has struggled for game time this season.
The Blues were also forced to start youngster Nathan Ake in defence due to a bout of gastroenteritis suffered by Gary Cahill. Chelsea play their next game against Southampton on Tuesday night and this provides their stars with enough time to recover in time for the clash against the Saints. However, following the 2-0 defeat against Manchester United last weekend, it is believed that Conte is not ready to risk success in the league for a place in the final of the FA Cup, hence he opted to start a weakened lineup.
Whether that decision comes back to haunt the Blues or if they are able to exploit Spurs’ poor Wembley record, remains to be seen. Twitter, as you would expect, was quick to react to the starting XI named by Chelsea and here are the best tweets:
And here is the Chelsea starting XI:
Conte prefers the league to the Cups
Now we know why Hazard missed out?
Has Conte really lost it?
Or is it just his confidence in Tottenham faltering?
With Costa, you never know!
Ander Herrera, interesting!
Chelsea fans do not like what they see...
Have they though?
Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is not behind when it comes to experimenting....
Next season will be interesting...
What an occasion to prove your doubters wrong...
Ominous?
