Paul Merson believes Moises Caicedo showed why he is the 'best holding midfielder in the world' during Chelsea's 5-1 win over Bournemouth.
Chelsea were winless in their last three Premier League matches but bounced back in emphatic style after the international break. Goals from Morgan Rogers and Jordan Henderson saw Chelsea race into a two-goal lead after three minutes at Stamford Bridge, with Joao Pedro furthering their lead shortly after half-time. Evanilson pulled a goal back for Bournemouth, but second goals for both Joao Pedro and Henderson saw Xabi Alonso's side complete a thumping win in front of their home fans.
Merson praises Caicedo's performance
While much of the plaudits were reserved for Chelsea's goalscoring exploits and talent in forward areas, Merson was keen to praise the performance of Caicedo in what was his first start of the season.
'When you've got Henderson and Caicedo in there, they can just sit, and you just let the other three just get on with it,' he told Sky Sports. 'They shouldn't let in too many goals, they shouldn't be that open, because you've got them two that can hold in midfield and then you've got three that are as good as anything.
'I thought they worked well together, Caicedo and Henderson. Henderson's got the experience and Caicedo, for me, is the best holding midfield player in the world of football.
'So for me, you get them two holding, and that's your insurance policy. And just let the others go and play.'
Alonso on the midfield partnership
Asked about the central midfield partnership post-match, Alonso said: 'Both are different in terms of qualities, in terms of the positioning as well.
'I think that they help each other well and they give presence, they give stability. You know that they are going to be the ones that are going to be helping the rest, not just for their qualities because they understand the game.
'They can play in shorter spaces but as well defensively they give good balance. For me it's fundamental that we get that area strong and for sure with Moises, Hendo played today, it was his second game.
'Romeo [Lavia] as well, he played good minutes, Reece [James] has played there a little bit on some minutes and [Valentin] Barco so we need to keep building around that.'
Injury update and next fixture
Club captain James has played a lot in central midfield so far this season but missed out on Saturday's win with an injury.
'He felt something but after we did the tests later in the afternoon and he had some little issues on the knee so we need to check how long it will be,' Alonso said post-match. 'We will assess it week by week.'
Chelsea are back in action next Saturday when they travel to face Everton.
