Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has not revealed which goalkeeper will start against West Ham on Monday, but he has sent a message to struggling stopper Robert Sanchez. The Spain international has been first choice with the gloves this season but is in poor form and has made a number of mistakes.

As recently as August, the unequivocal message coming out of Stamford Bridge was that Chelsea had their three goalkeepers of the future: reinstated No 1 Robert Sanchez, new signing Filip Jorgensen and giant Belgian teenager Mike Penders, who will arrive in west London from Genk in his homeland in the summer of 2025.

Sections of the Chelsea support have lost patience with Sanchez, leading Maresca to urge the Stamford Bridge crowd to get behind whoever he chooses on Monday night. He did admit, however, that taking a struggling player out of the firing line could prove a wise course of action.