Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez were back on opposite teams in the early hours of Friday morning as Argentina took on Ecuador in a World Cup qualifier. The midfield duo have only spent three games alongside each other following Caicedo's £115million move from Brighton just six months on from Chelsea spending over £105million to welcome Fernandez from Benfica.
Following his nightmare debut against West Ham where he conceded a late penalty, Caicedo has been deployed alongside Fernandez in the home fixtures against Luton Town and Nottingham Forest. The Blues beat the newly-promoted team 3-0 but suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Forest with Caicedo again culpable of playing a role in the goal.
Despite his less-than ideal start in west London, he received significant praise from Fernandez with the Argentine midfielder also revealing what he would do after the game. As quoted by ESPN, he said: "Moises is a great person, he has now arrived at Chelsea, we have talked a little about everything, not specifically about the game [between Argentina and Ecuador] but about changing the shirt [swapping shirts after the game]."
That fixture has since been played with Fernandez's Argentina coming out on top over Caicedo's Ecuador courtesy of a Lionel Messi wondergoal. The contest was level approaching the final 10 minutes until he scored a delightful free kick which left Ecuador goalkeeper Hernan Galindez rooted to the spot.
The 36-year-old did take a while to settle into the game with one of his first duels against Caicedo leaving the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner on the floor allowing the Chelsea man to come away with the ball. However, in the second 45, it was a different story as Caicedo was this time the one left on the deck by Messi's staggering footwork.
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However, it must be noted, according to FotMob, that was the only time Caicedo was dribbled past in the whole game as he also made 11 ball recoveries. Fernandez meanwhile, was influential further forward as he made 10 key passes into the final third, showcasing he can impact the game in attack.
For much of his Chelsea career, the World Cup winner has been forced to play a defensive role but with Caicedo now in the team, soon to be joined by Romeo Lavia, he can express himself more freely in front of goal without having to worry as much about his defensive responsibilities.
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