Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca described Christopher Nkunku as "the ideal player" after witnessing his side outclass Club America on Wednesday night.
Having failed to defeat either Wrexham or Celtic, and conceding four goals in the latter fixture, the Blues recorded a 3-0 victory in Atlanta.
Nkunku opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the third minute before Marc Guiu and Noni Madueke also got on the scoresheet in what was a much-improved performance, particularly in the defensive third.
Many players came away from the game with credit, yet the individual praise was saved for Nkunku and former Leicester City star Keirnan Dewsbury-Hall.
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Maresca waxes lyrical about Nkunku
In a injury-hit 2023-24, Nkunku featured for just 516 minutes spread across 14 matches in all competitions, sustaining knee, hamstring and hip issues during that period.
Surprisingly, the France international has been provided with over 200 minutes across Chelsea's opening three friendlies, all of which have taken place within a week.
However, Maresca has talked up the importance of both improving the playmaker's fitness and his value to the team, giving every indication that he will be a first-choice pick when in the right condition.
Speaking to reporters, as quoted by football.london, the Italian said: "I know Christo from years ago. I loved him before I joined this club. In the way we want to play, he is the ideal player. He can play in the pocket, in the nine, on the wing. In this moment we are using him in the pocket and he is doing very well.
"The reason he is playing every game is because we know that he is coming back from injuries and needs minutes. He is doing very well and also game after game he is getting better."
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Dewsbury-Hall was making his first appearance in a Chelsea shirt having missed the first two games of the United States tour with a minor injury, yet he starred in the opening 45 minutes against Club America, setting up Guiu's glancing header.
Maresca added: "You can see today; Kiernan is speaking a different language to his teammates because he knows exactly when he has to move wide, attack behind, that was one year with us. Christo is improving that with us."
In response to a follow-up question, he said: "From outside, you can see Kiernan is talking a different language to his teammates in terms of he knows exactly what he needs to do on and off the ball. On the ball sometimes he is going to receive it wide, running in behind.
"This is because we have worked together for one year. I asked him to speak with his teammates on the pitch because he knows exactly how we are to move and he is going to help us this season many times."
What next for Chelsea?
A showdown with Premier League champions Manchester City awaits Chelsea on Saturday before they complete the US tour with a clash against Real Madrid on August 7.
Pre-season will be wrapped up by playing Inter Milan at Stamford Bridge on August 11, with the top-flight opener versus Man City taking place a week later.
Darren Plant
