Home of football statistics and historyEnzo Maresca says he will put his faith in younger players when Chelsea welcome reigning champions Liverpool to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The Blues head into the game on the back of a hard-fought 1-0 home victory over Benfica in the Champions League in midweek, and the betting odds on non GamStop casinos UK and sports betting platforms aren’t the best given their opponent’s abilities.
That result was a welcome relief for Maresca after his team suffered disappointing defeats in their two most recent Premier League outings.
After coming up empty-handed against Manchester United and Brighton & Hove Albion, the Club World Cup winners have slipped to eighth in the table.
Three red cards in their last four matches in all competitions have not helped Chelsea’s cause, while injuries to several key players have limited Maresca’s options.
However, Maresca is confident that the Blues will start producing more consistent performances as the season progresses.
“I think we started very well, in terms of results and performance, the first four or five games,” Maresca said.
“And then probably the rest of the games we didn’t get the points that we wanted for sure, but we already analysed the reasons why.
“Most of the games where we didn’t get the points is because it was very complicated for us because of the red card.
“But no doubt that also the injury situation we have in this moment, we have eight players out. It’s a mix of things, but we don’t have any doubt that slowly we’re going to be where we need to be.”
Chelsea’s lengthy injury list, headlined by playmaker Cole Palmer, has undoubtedly made life more difficult for Maresca at the start of the season.
The Blues have been hit particularly hard in defence, with Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana among the players who have been sidelined.
Maresca has not been afraid to utilise the club’s younger players to fill the gaps and he says he will continue in the same vein when the need arises.
“I think it’s a fact that I really trust the young players – not just those that we buy but those from the academy,” Maresca added.
“We gave games to [Josh] Acheampong, leaving senior players on the bench, this shows that I trust the young players. The same thing happened with Ty [Tyrique George] – I really trust the players we have.
“As you say, we have four or five defenders out, but we’re going to try to adapt and find a solution for tomorrow.”
Liverpool visit Stamford Bridge on a recovery mission having slipped to damaging defeats in the Premier League and Champions League over the past week.
The Reds were deservedly defeated at Crystal Palace last weekend and followed up with a disappointing reverse at Galatasaray in midweek.
Arne Slot’s side are still top of the standings in the league, but could relinquish that position if Arsenal beat West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium earlier in the day.
Liverpool had gone ten matches unbeaten against Chelsea in all competitions prior to their 3-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge in May.
While they made a strong start to the league campaign in terms of results, their overall performances were largely unconvincing.
Given that Chelsea are already seven points behind Liverpool after six games, they cannot afford to lose any further ground in the title race.
Liverpool will be eager to bounce back this weekend, but Chelsea can cause them plenty of problems if they produce their best form.
Chelsea predicted starting XI: Sanchez, James, Acheampong, Badiashile, Cucurella, Lavia, Caicedo, Fernandez, Estevao, Neto, Pedro.
0 Comments