Enzo Maresca has revealed that he thinks Chelsea can't compete for the Premier League title due to their issues defensively. The former Leicester City boss arrived at Stamford Bridge last summer having guided the Foxes to promotion back to the top flight during the 2023/24 campaign. There were eyebrows raised initially when he was hired. A man with no experience managing in the Premier League being handed the keys to one of the division's wildest rides could have been a car crash waiting to happen.
Instead, he's settled into life at the Blues very nicely and the club have performed well beyond expectations so far. With the likes of Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson all playing at an elite level, Chelsea have lost just twice in the league so far and find themselves second in the table, just two points behind Arne Slot's Liverpool at the peak.
Despite their excellent start to the season, Maresca is adamant that his side aren't in a title race and can't compete for the trophy and he gave one key reason as to why.
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Maresca Thinks His Team Aren't Strong Enough Defensively
He thinks there's still work to do
enzo maresca chelse manager
After beating Brentford 2-1 on Sunday, Chelsea moved to within just two points of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League. With Manchester City in turmoil and Arsenal dropping points, it looks as though the Blues are the only side capable of pushing the Reds in the race of the title. Maresca doesn't think so, though, and it's down to his team's defensive issues as highlighted against the Bees. Speaking after the match, in quotes shared by the Daily Mail, he said:
"No matter how many games we win, I think we are not ready to compete for the title. One of the reasons why is that the team that knows how to compete to win titles, they won't concede goals we concede. A team that knows how to win titles, that is not a goal they know how to concede."
After Marc Cucurella and Jackson put Chelsea 2-0 up, they secured a seventh straight victory in all competitions, but not before conceding a to a Bryan Mbeumo effort in injury time. The goal was ultimately inconsequential, with the Blues beating Brentford 2-1, but it's moments like that which have Maresca unconvinced by his side's ability to compete for major silverware.
Whether they can compete for the title or not remains to be seen, but Chelsea fans have to be happy with how the club is playing right now. There's been a huge turnaround in fortunes in comparison to the struggles they went through over the last couple of years.