Palmer and Sancho start, Chilwell and Gusto call - Dream Chelsea behind-closed-doors friendly XI

Chelsea go into the November international break in a good place, with the club third in the Premier League having played 11 games. Enzo Maresca appears to be enjoying life in west London and the Italian will be keen to continue the momentum once domestic football returns on November 23.

For now, Maresca can only work with the players who remained at Cobham over the international break. While the likes of Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku, Marc Cucurella, Romero Lavia and Enzo Fernandez jetted off around the world to represent their countries, quite a few players have remained in west London.

In fact, 13 senior Chelsea players will be working with Maresca in the coming days so the former Leicester City boss does have a decent chunk of his squad to work with. The likes of Wesley Fofana and Malo Gusto will likely use the time to rest and be assessed by the Blues medical staff after withdrawing from international duty, while the same can be said for Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill.

With a number of academy stars likely to join in first team sessions in the coming days to boost numbers, it's possible a behind-closed-doors friendly is arranged to ensure fitness levels are maintained for those not representing their countries. While it is not yet known if a game has been scheduled, sides such as Brentford, QPR and Leeds have played against the Blues before.

Those staying behind include Marcus Bettinelli, Ben Chilwell, Axel Disasi, Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Reece James, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Carney Chukwuemeka and Jadon Sancho. As well as that, Maresca will have Gusto, Fofana, Colwill and Palmer, fitness permitting.

So, if Chelsea were to play a behind-closed-doors friendly during the international break, Bettinelli would likely play in goal, with Robert Sanchez away with Spain and Filip Jorgensen hoping to feature for Denmark Under-21s. Disasi could be handed some welcome minutes at right-back, with Chilwell given some much-needed game time on the opposite flank. Chilwell has only made one appearance under Maresca this season - a 45-minute cameo against Barrow in the Carabao Cup - and needs some game time ahead of the January transfer window, where he will be eyeing a move away from Stamford Bridge.

Tosin and Badiashile could play at centre-back, with no reason to risk either Fofana or Colwill. Ahead of the defence Chelsea captain James could do a job in central midfield, with Dewsbury-Hall and Chukwuemeka playing slightly ahead of him.

Sancho, if he recovers from his knock which saw him miss the game against Arsenal, would be an option on the left. On the right Maresca is a little light, however, so someone like Deivid Washington could be drafted in. Palmer, if fit, could operate in a fluid No.9 role to give Maresca a decent-looking starting XI.

Chelsea BCD XI: Bettinelli; Disasi, Tosin, Badiashile, Chilwell; James, Dewsbury-Hall, Chukwuemeka; Washington, Palmer, Sancho.

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