Ipswich City put a dent in Chelsea’s Premier League title hopes with a 2-0 win at Portman Street on Monday (December 30, 2024), however the west London facet’s head coach Enzo Maresca stated nobody anticipated his younger staff to be of their present place this season.
Chelsea was surprised by the promoted facet after Liam Delap and Omari Hutchinson scored both facet of the break, which dropped Maresca’s facet all the way down to fourth place, 10 factors behind leaders Liverpool who’ve a sport in hand.
Having completed sixth within the final marketing campaign and twelfth within the 2022-23 season, Chelsea employed Maresca in June after he guided Leicester Metropolis to the English Championship title in his first season in cost.
“Not one in all us on this room anticipated us to be the place we are actually,” Maresca instructed reporters. “This implies and reveals that we’re in the precise path, as I’ve stated many occasions, but additionally reveals that we’re removed from competing (with) consistency and to be there with the perfect groups in England.
“I believe we (have) to be glad with the place we’re, however on the identical time we have to know we (can) do issues higher.”
Maresca has constantly performed down his expensively assembled squad’s title probabilities, regardless of some spectacular victories this season.
Chelsea have now collected only one level from their final three league outings. However the Italian stated latest outcomes had been unavoidable.
“We anticipated this type of second throughout the season as a result of we all know that this type of second belongs to soccer. It’s virtually unattainable to have a season the place you do not need a second like now for us,” he stated.
Printed – December 31, 2024 12:11 pm IST
