The infamous ‘Kepa-gate’ fiasco seems to have at least temporarily breathed life back into Chelsea’s season, with Sunday’s 2-1 victory over Fulham in their first away win of 2019.
Maurizio Sarri was vindicated in his heavy-handed approach to Kepa Arrizabalaga, as the Spanish keeper on his return to the side put in a Man of the Match display to deny Scott Parker’s side a winning start to his tenure. Despite his heroics, Kepa is unlikely to start against Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kyiv in the first leg of Chelsea’s Europa League last 16 tie.
The Blues’ Eastern European opponents overcame a tricky last-32 tie with Greek side Olympiakos in the previous round, with a 1-0 home win seeing them progress 3-2 on aggregate.
Chelsea, on the other hand, coasted through 5-1 on aggregate, after a 3-0 victory over Swedish champions Malmo in the second leg of their tie.
Sarri has made light of the fact that due to a hectic schedule, that included extra time against Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final, there will be significant rotation ahead of tonight’s game at Stamford Bridge.
