Mauricio Pochettino told how to fix ‘restricting’ Enzo Fernandez problem at Chelsea

Mauricio Pochettino has been told where he may be going wrong with Enzo Fernandez at Chelsea.

It has been a disappointing start to the season for the Blues, who have picked up just one win to start the Premier League season, at least ahead of Monday night’s clash with Fulham. Chelsea spent significantly during the summer, but they are still struggling to pick up wins, with Pochettino enduring a tricky start to life at Stamford Bridge.

Fernandez was one of Chelsea’s marquee signings on the back of his impressive performances at the World Cup, arriving on a deal worth more than £100million, but he is one of a number of players to struggle to hit the ground running in West London.

But pundit Stan Collymore believes there is an obvious reason why Pochettino and Chelsea fans are not seeing the best of Fernandez.

“It’s likely Mauricio Pochettino will ask Enzo Fernandez to play in behind the forward again against Fulham,” the former Liverpool star told CaughtOffside.

“I rate Pochettino a lot. He’s a top manager but I think he’s getting it wrong with Fernandez. I don’t understand the obsession of playing him as a number 10. He isn’t a number 10. Fernandez is at his best when he’s playing a deeper role and allowed the freedom to travel between boxes. At the moment, he’s being penned into a very small area of the pitch and it’s restricting his best attributes.”

It was expected that Fernandez would play alongside Moises Caicedo this season, but Conor Gallagher is currently playing alongside the former Brighton star in the double pivot. Chelsea do lack a number 10, at least with their current system, but part of the Pochettino headache is trying to get the best out of each player and trying to get players in their best positions without significantly compromising his way of playing.