Chelsea are preparing for a chilly encounter and an unusual kick-off time when they face Astana in the Conference League on Thursday.
Having won all four of their league-phase fixtures, the Blues are in a commanding position to reach the knockout stages.
But their penultimate fixture has thrown up all kinds of difficulties for Enzo Maresca’s side and their travelling fans as they prepare to take on Kazakhstan minnows Astana.
Not only will the journey take eight hours on a plane but it will also see the Premier League side forced to play in brutal winter conditions.
Why does Astana vs Chelsea kick-off so early?
Given the five-hour time difference, the game will take place much earlier for United Kingdom viewers and is scheduled to kick off at 3:30pm in the UK (8:30pm local time).
As such, Chelsea’s players will not be forced to adapt to the different time zone and can simply treat the game as if it was an early afternoon fixture.
And to help further with travel plans, the Premier League side have also been allowed by UEFA to hold their pre-match press conference and final training session at Cobham rather than in Kazakhstan.
A major reason for the early kick-off time is also due to the weather conditions which are predicted to reach as low as -11C on Thursday.
The Kazakh Premier League is held from spring to late autumn but wraps up in November due to the climate in the region.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Maresca hinted at several changes as he looks to manage his squad given the quick turnaround before Sunday’s league fixture against Brentford.
‘Some of them will be here and some of them will fly with us. More or less, we try to manage in the same way we have done before today,’ he said.
‘We have many young players, 17 players with us, and the rest will be here with us. Eight hours is not a normal time for a game, you know, but we have to go there, we have to play, try our best and thinking also about the next game.’
The Italian confirmed that Noni Madueke is one of the players who will stay behind but also confirmed that youngster Josh Acheampong is set to make his first start for the club.
‘He’s in the squad and probably he’s going to play from the start,’ he said.
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