Chelsea v Ajax: Seven players ruled out of Enzo Maresca's side for tonight's Champions League clash
Chelsea manger Enzo Maresca will be without seven of his best players for tonight’s Champions League clash against Ajax.
The Dutch giants travel to Stamford Bridge this evening (October 22) for each club’s third game of the European competition’s league phase.
Once each team in the Champions League has played eight matches, the top eight teams will advance automatically to the knockout stage, with ninth through 24th battling it out in playoffs to determine the last 16.
Chelsea are currently in 19th place, having lost their opening fixture against Bayern Munich 3-1, before a 1-0 win against Benfica.
Meanwhile, Ajax are 36th and last in the competition, having lost their first two games - a 2-0 defeat to Inter Milan was followed by a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Marseille.
Although some squad rotation is on the cards, Maresca will have to contend with an ongoing injury crisis - with seven players sidelined.
Defensively, Benoit Badiashile and Levi Colwill have been missing all season with injuries; Malo Gusto picked up a red card in the Premier League against Sunderland at the weekend, but is eligible to play in the Champions League, and so will likely play a full 90 minutes.
In midfield, Enzo Fernandez is still a fitness doubt, having missed the aforementioned Sunderland game entirely, and Cole Palmer’s injury continues to rule him out of a return to the pitch. Dario Essugo is still recovering from a thigh injury.
Upfront, new striker Liam Delap is out injured with a hamstring injury, and Mykhailo Mudryk is serving a provisional suspension after testing positive in a doping test.