Chelsea take on Fluminense in the semi-final of the FIFA Club World Cup tonight, with the Blues hoping to book their place in the final.
The Premier League side are fresh off their 2-1 win against Palmeiras and will face Fluminense who are coming off back-to-back upsets vs Inter Milan and Al Hilal.
Levi Cowill and Liam Delap will both be unavailable for this game, having accumulated enough yellow cards for a suspension, however Ecuadorian midfielder Moises Caicedo will be back from suspension, having missed the quarter-final vs Palmeiras.
Maresca was full of praise for the midfielder: “Moi has been one of the best players of the season, and he is a very important player for us and his team-mate.”
“Fortunately, we also have Romeo (Lavia) and we used Andrey Santos in that position [against Palmeiras]. We are quite happy, but we are happier when Moi is in the team.”
The Blues will face former player and Fluminense captain Thiago Silva, with the Brazilian defender having won the Champions League and the Club World Cup during his 4 years with the club, and still has links to many of the players.
“I do know a lot of players there. I talk to them practically every week.” Sliva said.
“We just hope to have a perfect day so that we can play the best game possible. I’m happy about this match. It’s going to be a special day for me, but it will be even more special if we win.”
The winner of this game will face either Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid in the final, with the winner getting over $125 million in prize money.
