Enzo Maresca has explained why he substituted Enzo Fernandez at half-time in Chelsea’s 8-0 Europa Conference League win over FC Noah.

The Argentine has fallen out of the Blues’ starting line-up for Premier League games of late and was docked at the interval when Chelsea were 6-0 up against Armenian side Noah, with Fernandez having assisted half of the goals.

The 23-year-old joined Chelsea in January 2023 for a fee of £106.8million but has not always found life at Stamford Bridge plain-sailing despite the huge transfer fee he commanded when moving from Benfica.

Asked why he replaced Fernandez at half-time against Noah, Maresca said: “He is okay. It was just a technical decision. No more about that. It was okay.”

Maresca also handed a first start to 18-year-old academy star Tyrique George.

“I think he was very good,” the Italian said of George’s performance. “With young players, sometimes it’s better to tell them the day before so they can prepare. With some of them, it’s better to tell them at the end so they don’t get nervous.

“The plan with Tyrique was that he knew already he was going to start. I just told him two hours before the game. I think he was very good. Also, Sam Rak-Sakyi when he was inside was good.

“I’m very happy that Marc Guiu scored. He didn’t get many minutes with us this season but he’s working very hard.”

Reflecting on his side’s sizeable victory over the Armenians, Maresca said: “The players once again showed how professional and serious they are. It is very easy to slip in these sorts of games. Football is full of surprises. I asked them to show how they professional they are, and they showed that.”