The last couple of weekends have been disappointing for Enzo Maresca and his Chelsea side.
On Saturday, the Blues were beaten 3-1 by Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League. The previous Saturday, they lost 2-1 to Manchester United.
Chelsea are not being helped by the red cards they have been picking up, with Trevoh Chalobah being the latest player to be dismissed during a game. Following his sending off over the weekend, Chalobah was definitely one of the losers from his team’s latest defeat.
Despite all of the above, though, the club still think Maresca‘s men can have a successful season, but they believe it could hinge on one factor.
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How Enzo Maresca manages Chelsea squad in Premier League and Champions League campaigns could be key
Unlike last season, Maresca is having to juggle Premier League and Champions League campaigns, which he has found difficult so far.
Chelsea have already lost their first game in Europe’s elite competition after being beaten 3-1 by Bayern Munich. Cole Palmer impressed the German media that night, but he has really struggled with his fitness since then.
According to The Telegraph, Chelsea now believe that having a successful season will come down to how well Maresca can “rotate his way through” the club’s Premier League and Champions League campaigns amid an ongoing injury crisis.
As well as Palmer, the Chelsea manager was also without Wesley Fofana, Tosin Adarabioyo and Levi Colwill for the defeat to Brighton. There is hope that Palmer will be fully fit again next month.
Enzo Maresca’s in-game management has been poor
Success is also going to come down to Maresca’s in-game management, which has been shocking lately.
Simply put, the Italian has not reacted well to Chelsea going down to 10 men, making extremely defensive substitutions that invited even more pressure on his team.
Thankfully, Chelsea will not be playing a man down every week. But it is clear that Maresca’s in-game management could do with some fine-tuning.
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