Michael Olise starts, Mykhailo Mudryk benched - Dream Chelsea XI for Manchester City clash

Enzo Maresca will be desperate to get off to the best possible start as Chelsea head coach but he could not face a more difficult challenge in his first match.

Maresca begins his Premier League career with a home clash against the reigning champions Manchester City on August 18. For Chelsea, it is of course a really difficult challenge but perhaps a good time to play City, who have fallen victim to starting seasons subpar in recent times by their own ridiculous standards.

Before that, though, Chelsea have a busy couple of months ahead of them on and off the pitch. The Blues go to the United States for their pre-season tour next month while they will be working on getting their transfer business done behind the scenes in order to give Maresca all of the necessary tools for his debut campaign at Stamford Bridge.

By the time the Premier League season gets underway, the Chelsea squad could look vastly different. And with that being said, football.london envisages what the Blues team could look like for their clash with Man City in August.

Goalkeeper

There have been rumours that Chelsea are in the market for a new goalkeeper, but football.london understands a shot-stopper is not one of the club's priorities at this early stage of the summer transfer window. The Blues have both Robert Sanchez and Djordje Petrovic to choose from and the former is said to be admired by the incoming Maresca, so there is every chance we see the Spaniard start against Man City.

Defenders

After picking up his second red card of the season in the penultimate game of the last campaign, captain Reece James will be suspended for the trip of City. Instead, Malo Gusto is likely to take the right-back's place in defence.

READ MORE: Chelsea already face double fixture change as Enzo Maresca learns Premier League schedule

READ MORE: Chelsea face nightmare Premier League, Europa Conference League and Carabao Cup scenario

Chelsea will be hoping Wesley Fofana can get some much-needed minutes to his name in pre-season. The 23-year-old centre-back missed the entirety of the last campaign after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligaments almost 12 months ago.

If he can, then there is every chance he could partner Levi Colwill at the heart of the Chelsea defence. Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo and Axel Disasi are all options for the Blues, while the futures of Trevoh Chalobah and Alfie Gilchrist are unclear, with the former continuing to be linked with a permanent exit and the latter the subject of plenty of loan interest.

Meanwhile, Marc Cucurella may keep his place on the left-hand side of defence. Ben Chilwell, of course, is an option for Maresca as well but Cucurella, who flourished in an inverted role at the end of last season, seems to suit the Italian's style of play and ideology more.

Midfielders

I think this goes without saying, really. There could be an argument for Conor Gallagher should he stay around but we still do not know what is going to happen regarding his future, with Aston Villa and Tottenham both interested.

Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, who are representing Argentina and Ecuador at the Copa America respectively, should be the pairing Maresca chooses for the opening game. It will be interesting to see what sort of role Cesare Casadei and Andrey Santos have at the club, or whether they will both be loaned out again.

Attackers

There are plenty of options for the front four - and there could be even more by the time Man City come to town. Michael Olise is the name on every Chelsea supporters' lips at the moment, with the club in talks with Crystal Palace over a move for the 22-year-old, football.london understands.

If Chelsea can add the immensely talented winger to their squad, then it could mean Cole Palmer starts in the middle as the No.10. Then, what do you do on the left wing?

Christopher Nkunku has been used there before for RB Leipzig and that might be the route Maresca goes down, if the Frenchman is fit and available. Of course you have Raheem Sterling and Mykhailo Mudryk to choose from, too, but neither did enough last season to cement a place in the first-team setup.

Nicolas Jackson looks likely, at this stage, to lead the line on the opening weekend of the season. The club are actively pursuing a deal for Jhon Duran but even if a fee is agreed on with Aston Villa and the 20-year-old striker moves to Stamford Bridge, there is no guarantee of his status within the squad.

Dream Chelsea line-up vs Manchester City: Sanchez; Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Olise, Palmer, Nkunku; Jackson.