Ex-Chelsea and France star Marcel Desailly believes a former Liverpool star could thrive under Enzo Maresca if the Blues made a January move to boost their forward ranks
Enzo Maresca could unleash Darwin Nunez in the Premier League
Enzo Maresca could unleash Darwin Nunez in the Premier League(Image: Getty Images)
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Former Chelsea captain Marcel Desailly reckons the Blues could still stand to benefit from adding a striker this January, and a former Liverpool star could provide the perfect answer. The World Cup-winning Frenchman has claimed Darwin Nunez could thrive in a system under Enzo Maresca.
The Uruguay international departed Anfield in the summer and now plies his trade for Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal. Darwin spent three years with Liverpool but blew hot and cold as he won over supporters with his work rate.
The striker has got off to a quick start in Saudi Arabia, however. The 26-year-old has scored four goals and provided two assists in his first six matches for his new club.
"[He is] young, he had bad luck at Liverpool, but if Liverpool took him, it means that they’ve seen in him a real potential. I wanted Darwin Nunez to come into the system confident, with Maresca, with a good system.
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"It could have really been helpful for Chelsea. Not too expensive. So this is my opinion. I would have really loved to see that player into the squad.
"If he’s still in the market, if Saudi is not suiting him correctly, he could be the one that comes back."
While Desailly wants to see a new forward, he does have some reservations about a leaky Blues defence too. The ex-defender wants to see some stability.
Darwin Nunez has started well in Saudi Arabia
Darwin Nunez has started well in Saudi Arabia
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"They are quite young. They had some injuries. They have to replace the players," Desailly said.
"Maresca sometimes likes to play with different tactics, for either three, four, it depends, and he asks his central defender to go forward and play with the midfield.
"They have good defenders, but they are sometimes too attracted by getting the ball back instead of, first of all, you need to defend correctly and allow the others to take on the offensive side of it.
"So it’s just a balance of everything. So we hope the squad is big enough to be able to bring stability to the defence."
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