Enzo Maresca has just given his post-match press conference after defeat against Manchester City.
As you’d expect, he was pretty positive. His side had done well and competed against the Champions. But he was also able to pick out the one thing that he thought had made the difference between the two sides.
“The difference between us and them was inside the box,” Maresca observed in his post-match interview with BeinSport. It’s hard to disagree – where Nicolas Jackson failed, Erling Haaland succeeded, and City end up winners.
You can see the manager speaking in the clip embedded here:
"The difference between us and them was inside the box" – Enzo Maresca
We wonder if there is a striker they could sign to fix that issue @Mikel_John_Obi?#beINPL #CFC pic.twitter.com/bLwLSwhhU6
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) August 18, 2024
[Footage from BeinSport]
Haaland is obviously one of two or three best strikers in the world (with only Lewandowski and Kane in the same conversation from a pure finishing standpoint), so it’s a little harsh to hold Jackson (or any player) to that standard. But for the lack of focus that led to the offsides on his disallowed goal, Jackson played well and was certainly more dangerous than Guiu (who didn’t offer the runs down the channels or in behind). That said, Maresca is right—we showed our first XI can hold their own with the league champions, but we won’t be beating City until/unless we can find more quality/precision in the final third.
I always wondered why the coaching team does not prepare them to score from outside the box, just like Kovacic’s goal and also Debruyne’s long range shot.
Chelsea seems to struggle mightily to get something going inside the box, but not successful at all. Why not try something else for a change?
Chelsea of now is not the club I bet for again, if osimhem Skipp off our hand, Chelsea will definite surfer it, the earlier the better we sign the Napoli guy and get confidence going to the season