Chelsea manager Maresca reveals reasons behind James and Lavia alterations

Both players were finally making their comeback after a prolonged period of being sidelined by injury, and they both managed to last 55 minutes on the field at Anfield.

After the 2-1 defeat on Sunday, Maresca said: "Yeah, for him (James) and Romeo, the idea was for him and Romeo to have one hour or 55 minutes maximum. I was quite afraid to keep them on for more minutes on the pitch so I decided to change both of them on 55 minutes."

Maresca also said: "I'm relaxed. I'm not happy because we lost. But I'm relaxed and happy with the performance of the team. The decision from the referee has been clear for you, it's been clear for me, and it's been clear for probably all of you.

"The referee is there to make decisions. Sometimes they are right, sometimes they are wrong. Nothing to say."