Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca says squad rotation is essential to protect players who cannot handle playing every three days, as his side prepares to visit Bournemouth and recover from Wednesday’s 3-1 defeat at Leeds United.

Maresca came under fire following the loss to the struggling Championship side, especially after he opted to make five changes to the team that impressively drew 1-1 with league leaders Arsenal despite being reduced to 10 men.

That midweek setback ended Chelsea’s seven-game unbeaten streak across competitions. The Blues currently sit fourth in the Premier League, nine points adrift of Arsenal.

“Most of the changes we make are because some players simply can’t play every three days,” Maresca said on Friday. “We have four or five players we must protect and manage carefully. Of course, I’d love to have Reece (James), Pedro (Neto), Moi (Moises Caicedo), even Romeo (Lavia) available for every match, but it’s impossible, so we try to find alternative solutions.”

Saturday’s clash at Bournemouth will mark Chelsea’s fifth fixture in just two weeks since returning from the international break.

Caicedo — who has featured in 50 of Maresca’s 51 league games — remains suspended for two more matches following his recent red card. Meanwhile, Lavia, Levi Colwill and Dario Essugo are sidelined with injuries.

Reflecting on the defeat, Maresca admitted his team fell well short of expectations at Elland Road.

“I watched the game back and we got many things wrong. Playing away at Leeds can be very tough, and we paid the price for our mistakes. It’s something we must learn from moving forward,” he said.

The Italian also warned that Bournemouth are likely to adopt a similarly intense approach.

“Leeds pressed with huge intensity and outperformed us in every area. Hopefully we’ll take those lessons on board and show improvement tomorrow,” Maresca added.