Chelsea take on ES Tunis tonight in the Club World Cup, and Enzo Maresca has just done his press conference ahead of the game.
He was asked about some of the things he’s tried in this tournament so far – what had he made of what he called an “experiment” tactically in our last game.
Enzo Maresca denies he made major changes for crucial Flamengo game
Cole Palmer with heatmap inlay.
Cole Palmer with heatmap inlay. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
According to Maresca not much had actually changed:
“In the Flamengo game, Cole [Palmer] and Enzo [Fernandez] on the ball were occupying the same positions they did during the season. Cole on the right side, Enzo on the left side, both attacking midfielders, both in the pocket,” the manager said.
“Off the ball, Cole defended a little bit more wide. But the position on the ball was exactly the same that they had during the season.”
He was also asked about using this tournament as a testing ground, and agreed it was important given it’s his only chance before next season:
“We are here to think about the future. To try different systems – last year we played 3 or 4 different systems during the season, the idea is to continue to evolve and improve and to try different things.”
You can see the coach speaking in the clip embedded here:
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Maresca’s amusing contradictions
It’s quite funny to hear Maresca play down the tactical changes he made, given that he was the one who raised them as an excuse after the loss to Flamengo, claiming that he had been doing an “experiment” which affected the team’s ability to win the game.
We wonder what he’s got cooking for tonight’s final group match, which will decide if we qualify.
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Enzo Maresca looks on from the touchline during Chelsea's defeat against Flamengo.
Liam Delap's legs with a Chelsea logo.
Enzo Maresca on the touchline in the Club World Cup.