Despite a surprising 2-2 draw against Qarabag in the Champions League, Chelsea will persist with Enzo Maresca's rotation policy. The Italian head coach made seven alterations to the Blues' line-up that triumphed over Tottenham, for the match in Azerbaijan, and later admitted that last summer's Club World Cup victory was starting to impact his star-studded squad.

Romeo Lavia had to be substituted after only eight minutes at the Azersun Arena due to a muscle injury, forcing midfielder Moises Caicedo, who has had little rest this season, to join the game on a night when he was supposed to be conserving his energy.

Maresca has also used a different centre-back duo in each of Chelsea's last 10 matches in all competitions, but the club are believed to be confident that they will benefit from the rotation strategy by the end of the season - both domestically and in Europe.

Chelsea's owners, board, sporting directors, and coaching staff collectively agree that refreshing the starting XI is essential to cope with the congested fixture schedule.

When the Blues return from the international break, they face a demanding sequence of 11 matches in all competitions...