Mazzarri may rest Cavani ahead of Chelsea trip

Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri admitted Thursday he is thinking of resting top scorer Edinson Cavani for the visit of Cagliari on Friday as his side eye next week's Champions League clash against Chelsea. Mazzarri, whose team are still in all three competitions this season, is keen to keep the Uruguayan hot-shot on the back-burner so he can unleash him in London where Napoli take a 3-1 lead from their last 16, first leg clash. That means Macedonia forward Goran Pandev may come into the side instead. "You (journalists) rightly call it turnover but I have to rest certain elements when faced with such a busy schedule," said Mazzarri. "I always try to pick players who can express themselves to the best of their brilliance. "And in that respect, maybe for me it also increases the number of changes I make during a game. "It's possible (that Pandev will play), Goran is a player with important quality and he's given the best response every time he's been called upon. It's possible that Pandev will play from the beginning and that Cavani will rest with a view to forthcoming commitments." Looking ahead to the Champions League clash at Chelsea, Mazzarri says you only have to take Arsenal's 3-0 victory over AC Milan on Tuesday to see the pitfalls that lie ahead. Napoli may lead 3-1 from the first leg in Naples but Mazzarri is taking nothing for granted. "I'm pleased with the esteem we're earning on an international level," he added. "We know Chelsea but obviously now that they've got a new coach we'll study them with even more attention. "But Arsenal-Milan is an example to make you understand what kind of a match we'll need on Wednesday in England."