Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has revealed Levi Colwill will begin the season as a starter in central defence.
Colwill has agreed a new six-year deal to continue at Chelsea until 2029 and is now expected to be a key part of their season.
Colwill set to cement Chelsea place
Benoit Badiashile is currently absent with a hamstring injury which opens a path for the Colwill to establish himself as a fixture in Pochettino’s starting XI.
Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s final pre-season friendly against Borussia Dortmund, Pochettino revealed Colwill was in contention to start against Liverpool but was keen to stress he will not hand out any guarantees.
“We assume that he is going to play,” Pochettino said of Colwill.
“I was clear with him when we were talking for him to have the possibility to compete with teammates about who deserves to play. For sure, if he deserves to play he’s going to play.
“Of course, his possibility to play is higher because Benoit is injured and he is a left centre-back, but he needs to deserve it. If one player is injured, there are different kinds of combinations that can happen.
"He needs to show that he is ready to play and deserves to play.”
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