Enzo Maresca details Chelsea plans for impressive youngster

Enzo Maresca deployed a strong Chelsea XI for the Blues second pre-season friendly game against Celtic on Saturday.

First-team stars Benoit Badiashile, Reece James and Christopher Nkunku all started from the outset, but that could not prevent Chelsea from suffering an embarrassing 4-1 defeat.

Summer recruit Marc Guiu was handed his second straight start and the 18-year-old was one of very few Chelsea players to impress despite the humiliating result.

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Guiu once again offered plenty of glimpses of just what he can offer in the near future. Arriving from Barcelona earlier this summer after the Blues activated his £5 million ($6.43m) release clause, continuing the club's philosophy of recruiting the best young talent from all over the world, the Spaniard is very much another talented youngster signed with the future in mind at Stamford Bridge.

The Spaniard is a product of Barcelona's renowned La Masia academy and made seven appearances for the Catalans last season, notably scoring on his debut against Athletic Bilbao just 23 seconds after being subbed on to the pitch.

When a young player joins Chelsea, it's often assumed they will be sent out on loan to gain valuable playing time and experience.

However, Enzo Maresca's recent comments suggest that Guiu could be an integral part of Chelsea's plans for the upcoming season, based on his impressive performances in preseason so far.

Maresca said: "The idea with Marc, with all the young players, is to have a look now during the pre-season and then to make a decision altogether.

"I think Marc is doing well and he’s one of the guys in this moment is going to stay with us and not going to go somewhere."

Maresca declined to confirm Chelsea's imminent signings of Boca Juniors center-back Aaron Anselmino and Villarreal goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen, although he did praise both players as "very good."

The Chelsea manager said: "No, the only thing I can say is they are still Boca Juniors player and Villarreal players.

"The moment they arrive, we will make some comment but at this moment, they are still not our player, so we will see.

"I know both of them. And both of them are very good."

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