Chelsea have slipped in the Champions League standingsplaceholder image
Chelsea have slipped in the Champions League standings | Getty Images
Enzo Maresca is realistic about Chelsea’s chances of avoiding a Champions League playoff.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca believes his side now need to win two from two to avoid a Champions League playoff after suffering defeat in Bergamo on Tuesday night. The Blues took the lead through Joao Pedro only for Gianluca Scamacca and Charles De Ketelaere to turn things around for the Italian side.
The result means Atalanta leapfrog Chelsea and move into the Round of 16 automatic qualification spots, which are the top eight. In fact, Atalanta are all the way up to third, albeit with Wednesday’s games still to come, while Chelsea slip to 11th and could slide further if any of Manchester City, Newcastle United and Bayer Leverkusen win on Wednesday.
According to Maresca, the result now leaves Chelsea needing to win both of their remaining two games, which are against Pafos and Napoli, if they want to avoid needing a playoff to reach the next round.
“Probably with two wins and 16 points you can be in the top eight, but I’m not sure about that,” the Chelsea boss admitted. “Now the focus has to be the game at home and then the next one.
“For sure, if we want to try to finish in the top eight we need to win both. Otherwise we will have to play in the play-off to go through to the next round.”
Asked about this particular result, Maresca said: “After the goal we conceded we lost a little bit the control of the game. The first half we scored the goal, we conceded some chances. The second half we had two good chances to score the second one, and then they scored.
“After it went 1-1 we lost a little bit the control of the game and they got the second one. I think both goals we conceded we could have avoided. They were quite easy goals.
“I don’t think we suffered too much until we conceded the goal. That changed the whole dynamic of the game. After the second goal we had an opportunity to score and level the game, but this is a particular moment for us and we just need to win the next game.”
Palladino on Atalanta’s big performance
Atalanta boss Raffaele Palladino was delighted to see his side bounce back from a Serie A defeat to Verona with a statement win over Chelsea.
“I am very happy, because it was a magical evening in front of our fans. We played against a very strong opponent, I was impressed by their technical quality and pace. This gives extra value to our victory and confirms what we are worth too,” Palladino told Sky Sport Italia.
“As I told them in the centre circle, we cannot be this inconsistent. I want to believe Verona was just a slip-up, as we need this Atalanta spirit and DNA in every single game. They were perfect tonight, we only had a day to prepare for the match, and I thank them. This type of performance and result can really boost your self-belief, but now we have to focus on the next Serie A match.”
Continue Reading