Enzo Maresca Rules Chelsea Out Of Premier League Title Race For One Reason

2 bulan yang lalu

Chelsea head Enzo Maresca lamented his team’s deficiency of consistency while explaining why nan Blues would not “be there” successful nan Premier League title race.

Maresca’s broadside were stung by a stoppage-time victor arsenic Sunderland emerged from Stamford Bridge pinch a 2–1 win connected Saturday. The recently promoted visitors fell down to a fourth-minute Alejandro Garnacho opener but managed to limit their hosts thereafter.

As Chelsea’s beleaguered caput coach would admit, location was “a deficiency of creativity.” Sunderland equalised successful nan first half astatine a agelong propulsion done Wilson Isidor earlier snatching each 3 points successful nan 93rd infinitesimal courtesy of Chemsdine Talbi’s first extremity for nan club.

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It was a peculiarly frustrating result—and performance—given nan bully shape Chelsea carried into Saturday’s contest. The westbound London outfit thumped Ajax 5–1 successful a record-shattering Champions League triumph connected Wednesday, racking up their 4th consecutive triumph connected nan spin.

Yet, successful what has go a worrying pattern, Chelsea grounded to support that form. “If you want to beryllium there, you request consistency,” Maresca sighed postgame. “Winning 4 successful a statement and past today’s [result], it shows that.

“If we tin person that level [Maresca lifted his manus towards nan ceiling] and this level [dropped nan aforesaid thenar towards nan floor], astir apt it’s amended to person thing successful between, to beryllium ever successful nan aforesaid way.”

Chelsea suffered a daze conclusion astatine location to Sunderland. / HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP/Getty Images

Chelsea’s fluctuations successful shape are possibly a consequence of their recruitment strategy. For each of nan accolades spilling their measurement aft nan midweek triumph complete Ajax, every toppled record was age-related. A painfully youthful squad is going to beryllium people prone to peaks and troughs.

However, it was 2 of Chelsea’s oldest players who conspired to springiness distant an wholly avoidable victor for Sunderland.

Trevoh Chalobah, 26, chased Brian Brobbey backmost into Chelsea’s half successful nan dying embers of Sunday’s contest. He was joined by 28-year-old Tosin Adarabioyo, nan oldest subordinate successful Maresca’s squad, while Sunderland’s striker didn’t person different group of reddish and achromatic stripes successful sight.

While Tosin jockeyed Brobbey, Chalobah was oddly unmoved, not truthful overmuch concerned pinch preventing a extremity arsenic getting a really clear position of it. The Dutch guardant delayed agelong capable to laic nan shot disconnected for Talbi who had ample room to changeable it into nan bottommost corner.

“That tin beryllium an easy situation,” Maresca moaned. “We were 2 vs. one, nan striker is facing his ain goal. It’s an easy business to defend. In that lawsuit we person to do better.”

Chelsea’s wide capacity near their head successful a huff. “We were not bully capable and successful nan Premier League nan consequences tin beryllium bad,” he sighed. “When you’re not capable to triumph it’s important that you don’t lose.”