Chelsea will be without at least seven players for Thursday's Conference League last-16 second-leg clash with Copenhagen at Stamford Bridge.
Mykhaylo Mudryk remains suspended and fellow attackers Nicolas Jackson, Noni Madueke and Marc Guiu are all sidelined as they continue to recover from hamstring injuries. Malo Gusto is another who has been ruled out with an ankle problem, while Wesley Fofana and Romeo Lavia are both ineligible.
Right-back Reece James missed Chelsea's narrow 1-0 Premier League win over Leicester City last weekend through illness, but there is hope that he will return to the matchday squad on Thursday.
Cole Palmer missed his first-ever penalty against Leicester and Maresca stated after the game that the playmaker had been feeling unwell in the days leading up to kickoff. Maresca has since revealed that Palmer and Christopher Nkunku have been dealing with "some problems", but they are both feeling "better" after training on Wednesday and a late call will be made on whether they will feature against Copenhagen.
While Maresca will weigh up whether to stick with Robert Sanchez between the sticks or recall Filip Jorgensen, James could be fit to start on the right side of a back four at the expense of Fofana. Trevoh Chalobah is another who could also play at right-back, but he will likely battle with Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile for a start in central defence as Marc Cucurella continues at left-back.
James played and scored as a midfielder in the 2-1 first-leg win over Copenhagen last week, but if he reverts to a familiar right-back role on Thursday, Enzo Fernandez will presumably be recalled to link arms with Moises Caicedo in the middle of the pitch.
At the age of just 17 years and 137 days, Shumaira Mheuka became the youngest player to start for Chelsea in a major European competition last week and he may get the nod once again to lead the line, while Pedro Neto, Jadon Sancho, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Tyrique George will also compete for starts in the final third.
Chelsea possible starting lineup: Sanchez; James, Tosin, Badiashile, Cucurella; Fernandez, Caicedo; George, Palmer, Dewsbury-Hall; Mheuka
Oliver Thomas
