Enzo Maresca has just taken his press conference after Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Swiss side Servette in the UEFA Europa Conference League.
It was an awful performance from his team in the end – admittedly a rotated team, but one more than strong enough to beat a mid-table team from Switzerland no matter the circumstances. There were shocking individuals showings, a lack of cohesion through the team, and almost nobody walked away with any credit.
But Enzo says he saw it coming:
“I think the first half an hour was comfortable and we had three or four chances to make it 2-0. Then we concede the goal and it’s normal to suffer a little bit. I was very worried about this game,” the coach explained.
“For them, it’s probably their biggest game of the season. This kind of game, you have many things to lose and not many things to win. This is why I was so worried yesterday and before the game.
Where to next
It was a second string, which takes the pressure off. All will be forgotten if we play well against Crystal Palace on Sunday and win. But this year’s midweek games in the Conference League are going to turn into a real drag if we don’t go up a level from this performance.
This was largely the same team that played Servette last week, so they should rapidly be building chemistry. It was the same back 5, so they have no reason to look so flimsy.
Let’s hope that more weeks on the training pitch help this alternate XI improve as a unit, otherwise our Thursday nights are going to be must-miss viewings.
We also wonder if it ends up sparking any late window activity from the transfer team, who must be concerned they have left this team short.