Enzo Maresca admits he’s ‘very happy’ with £26m Chelsea player who’s brilliant for his age

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Enzo Maresca has claimed that Chelsea’s first-team player is performing superbly well for someone his age.

It’s been an impressive start for Enzo Maresca in his opening months as Chelsea manager, with several of his stars playing well under him.

The Blues sit fourth in the Premier League table right now because of the positive start. However, we’ll learn a lot more about Maresca’s side in their next four league fixtures.

Speaking recently via The Telegraph, Paul Winstanley says nobody is surprised by how well Maresca is doing at Chelsea.

• READ MORE: What Chelsea have been working on in training ahead of Liverpool clash on Sunday

Enzo Maresca impressed by Malo Gusto

Maresca has singled out Chelsea right-back Malo Gusto for special praise for the way he’s performed recently. In particular, he’s explained that the 21-year-old French defender is so good for someone so young.

When asked how Gusto is performing, Maresca responded via Football.London: “Fantastic. Very happy. He’s giving us many things. He’s helping the process in the way we want to play a lot. We are happy with him.

“For sure Malo is doing very, very well. For the age he is at and how much risk in terms of player, it is top.”

Gusto, who only cost Chelsea £26m (Sky Sports) from Lyon back in January 2023, has turned out to be an excellent piece of business from the club. The fact that he’s still only aged 21 is so exciting, too!

Don’t rush back Reece James

With the way that Gusto is currently performing in Chelsea’s XI at full-back, there should be no desperate need to rush back Reece James from his latest hamstring injury.

James is available for Chelsea’s squad on Sunday against Liverpool, but let’s wait and see if Maresca is tempted to throw him back in for his first appearance of the 2024/25 season.

The 24-year-old star is the club captain and clearly an outstanding talent on his day. However, his body has broken down so many times in recent years due to frequent injury.

While James slowly builds up his fitness again, Gusto is more than good enough to continue starting at right-back in most games.