Maresca talks about James playing as a defensive midfielder: It is expected that the opponent will have a heavy presence in the midfield and will need more confrontation.

In the 10th round of the Premier League, Chelsea defeated Tottenham 1-0 away from home. In this game, Blues captain Reece James and Caicedo partnered as a double midfielder. After the game, coach Maresca talked about this arrangement.

He said: "It depends on the game plan, I think the team needs to add some physical confrontation in the midfield. Because we expected the opponent to send Sarr, Bentancur and Palinha, but we did not expect that they would play four midfielders, and Berivar also came on.

"So we need to add more physical confrontation in the midfield, but it still depends on the game plan. I thought Rees was very good as a midfielder, certainly as a full-back, and his leadership in the dressing room was excellent. "