Why it's time Chelsea fans should trust Enzo Maresca's tactical calls after Pedro Neto masterstroke against Barcelona, writes KIERAN GILL - while underrated Blues star shows exactly why he is crucial to his boss's plans

An hour or so before kick-off, there was a fox on the loose inside Stamford Bridge, running in between the rows of seats in the East Stand.

You did wonder whether Chelsea might need one of those in the box, given Enzo Maresca’s starting line-up showed how he had zero strikers on the pitch.

He had three on the bench in Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Marc Guiu – four if we count the academy graduate Tyrique George – but none spearheading his attack.

Instead, Maresca used Pedro Neto up top, presumably because he hoped his speed might be a weapon against the Barcelona high line.

Still, Chelsea fans were worried, and Daily Mail Sport would be lying if we said we too did not wonder if this approach might backfire on the Blues.

We soon learned we need not have been concerned.

Neto played his role to perfection. He burst in behind. He was key to Chelsea’s opener. He came close to scoring a solo-goal which would have been reminiscent of the one that Gareth Bale scored against Barcelona all those years ago, in the 2014 Copa del Rey final.

Maybe it is time we started trusting Maresca’s tactical decisions more, especially in these big matches. 

The initial reaction was to question his thinking, but his plan worked here, as well as his calls did in the Club World Cup final against another formidable side in Paris Saint-Germain.

Playing with Gusto  

Here comes a Malo Gusto appreciation item. He is underrated in what he does for Chelsea, with Maresca asking him to perform jobs which can often go overlooked in games.

Take the Club World Cup final mentioned in the previous item, for example. It was no coincidence that Cole Palmer had so much space to do damage against PSG. It was aided by Gusto flying down his right flank to allow Palmer to move inside without his marker.

We saw something similar here. Gusto was sprinting down his wing so that Estevao could move inside and next to Neto. Gusto was removed at half-time but only because he was on a yellow, rightly shown to him for killing a Barcelona counter-attack.

That was clever from Chelsea, given how many red cards they have received this season. There was no need to run the risk of another. By finishing with 11 men here, they made it five games without a dismissal.

Brittle Barca's histrionics

Chelsea’s Under 19s faced Barcelona in the UEFA Youth League earlier in the day on Tuesday. It finished 1-1, but one onlooker commented how often Barca’s players were acting as if they had suffered serious injuries, only to magically recover instantly.

We saw that from the seniors, too, not least in Fermin Lopez. Twice he tried to buy cheap penalties in this clash. First, he dropped down like a sack of spuds in a when Trevoh Chalobah challenged him. Chalobah promptly told him to get up.

Then, he tried to buy another spot-kick or a potential red card out of Sanchez when Chelsea’s goalkeeper had cleared the ball and caught him in the follow-through.

Chelsea tried their luck with Lopez in the summer transfer window, apparently logging a bid with Barcelona. Obviously, it was unsuccessful. But the 22-year-old Spaniard would need to deal better with our physicality were he to come to the Premier League in the future.

Battle of the teens 

Estevao versus Lamine Yamal? It was not even a contest. Chelsea’s wonderkid won that battle, while Barcelona’s sensation walked off the pitch looked ever so slightly miffed. 

He did have the entirety of Stamford Bridge ironically cheering his substitution, in fairness.

You suspect this will have been the first of many battles between these super-starlets, and Chelsea fans would not swap Estevao for anyone. Even Yamal.