Antonio Conte says Cesc Fabregas has been left out of Chelsea’s starting XI against Liverpool in order to give the Spaniard a much needed rest.
In part due to injury to N’Golo Kante, Fabregas has started each of Chelsea’s last six Premier League matches and played 90 minutes against Qarabag in Azerbaijan on Wednesday.
But he will miss out at Anfield, though Conte insists he has not brought in Danny Drinkwater as a tactical tweak to make Chelsea more defensive.
He told BT Sport: ‘I think it’s a normal rotation, we need to have rotation.
‘Fabregas has played every game this season, and I think it’s right this choice I hope.’
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Chelsea have increasingly used a 3-4-1-2 formation, with three central midfielders behind Alvaro Morata and Eden Hazard up top, and Conte believes it has made his side more balanced.
He continued: ‘I think this season we are trying different solutions for more balance than in first part of the season because we conceded many goals. We are trying different solutions.’
For his part, rival boss Jurgen Klopp also made five changes for the visit of Chelsea compared to their midweek Champions League clash, with Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino dropped to the bench.
