Enzo Maresca has welcomed Ben Chilwell back into the fold - just weeks after bluntly telling the Chelsea star he had no future at Stamford Bridge.
The former Leicester left-back, 27, was among a number of players who were dropped into a 'bomb squad' after being excluded from the first-team training group by the new Blues head coach. Those players were then urged to leave the club by Maresca before last month's transfer deadline.
Chilwell did not manage to find a new club but played his first minutes of the season in the 5-0 Carabao Cup win over Barrow in midweek.
And Maresca has now seemingly confirmed that Chilwell, who was surprisingly included in the club's 25-man Premier League squad following the Italian's previous comments, will be welcomed back in from the cold.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Maresca said of Chilwell: "Yes, in the moment we need him, why not? I said already many times and I will say again that, as long as Chilly is with us, he is a Chelsea player. And if we need him, we give him a chance and minutes."
When he was asked if he felt he had made a mistake when telling Chilwell to find a new club, Maresca conceded that he had, perhaps, made a mistake.
He added: "We all make mistakes. Probably yes; probably no. I am here to take decisions. Sometimes they are good decisions and sometimes they are not good.
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"The only thing I can say is that there is not any bad intention from me. It is just to see things and try to think about the best things for the club."
Chilwell was linked with a number of clubs after it was outlined that he was surplus to requirements at Chelsea, though a move away failed to materialise.
The defender has clocked up over a century of appearances for the Blues since moving to London in 2020 and has been a mainstay under a number of different managers prior to Maresca's arrival in the summer.
Chilwell was treated to a loud ovation from Chelsea fans in midweek when he was introduced in the second half of the win against Barrow. He thanked fans on social media post-match, writing: "Missed nights at the Bridge in front of you guys," complete with a blue heart emoji.
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