Having won five and drawn two of their last seven clashes at the LNER Stadium, Lincoln will be filled with confidence as they prepare to face a Chelsea side who are coming off the back of a 2-1 loss to Manchester United at the weekend.
Maresca will rotate his side for the clash and there are many stars who often get overlooked that will be handed a chance by the Italian head coach in what is a huge opportunity to prove themselves.
Alejandro Garnacho and Josh Acheampong
Garnacho didn’t take to the pitch against his former club at the weekend, despite having provided an assist against Brentford the weekend before.
There is a strong chance the Argentine must take his chance to keep the pressure on the likes of Estevao and Pedro Neto of risk being an impact player.
Acheampong meanwhile, has made just one appearance for the first team so far this season which came in the draw with Crystal Palace on the opening weekend of the campaign. He has not taken to the pitch again since then and Maresca should hand him his chance this week.
Tyrique George and Reggie Walsh
Walsh is his Maresca’s favourite player within the Academy setup and is likely to feature this week as he is handed a first team opportunity. When asked about the 16-year-old, the Chelsea head coach said:
"I like all the academy guys but Reggie is the one I like more than the rest.
"I like Reggie because he is doing things that I am demanding to the other players, but he is doing those things without me asking him to do that. I don't need to ask him to do something. What he is doing is already what I want from that player."
George meanwhile has been given opportunities to shine from the bench since summer signing Liam Delap picked up an injury. Maresca has used him three times in the Premier League this season in which George has shone as the main striker which many predict will be the case against Lincoln.