Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has criticised defender Tosin Adarabioyo following the club's midweek defeat at Leeds United. The Blues suffered a heavy 3-1 loss at Elland Road on Wednesday evening to bring to an end an encouraging spell of form. Leeds took the lead from a set piece within the first 10 minutes, before Ao Tanaka doubled their advantage before the interval.
Pedro Neto reduced the deficit shortly after half-time, but it proved insufficient as Dominic Calvert-Lewin sealed victory late on, with Maresca's side unable to mount a comeback. The result leaves them fourth in the Premier League table ahead of this weekend's trip to Bournemouth - a match they must win to maintain their position in the top four.
With Reece James rested and left on the bench against Leeds, and Moises Caicedo unavailable through suspension, Maresca faced questions in his pre-match press conference about the shortage of experience and leadership in such a youthful squad.
The manager, however, attributed the defeat to below-par individual performances - singling out Adarabioyo for criticism. "We are always talking about experience when we drop points but when we beat Barcelona and drew with Arsenal, no one is talking about experienced players," he said on Friday morning.
"This was not the reason. We have experienced players, one that was suspended and one who has an injury. Who was the most experienced player for us in the week? Tosin. Did he play good? So it is not about experience."
However, Maresca did admit that his team selection against Leeds may have been misguided. With James rested and unused, Trevoh Chalobah filled in at right-back, with Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile at centre-back - but in retrospect, teenager Josh Acheampong might have been a better choice.
"One of the regrets I have after the game is that I didn't play with Josh," Maresca confessed. "The reason why we played with Trevoh, Benoit and Tosin was because we saw long balls to their strikers, but even that, we lost most of them."
Chelsea are set to face Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon, eager to return to winning form. They then have to gear up for a midweek Champions League match away at Atalanta, followed by Everton's visit a few days later.
In the European competition, Chelsea currently sit seventh in the league phase standings, just within the automatic qualification spots. Their remaining fixtures include matches against Pafos and Napoli, along with Atalanta.