Liverpool legend Steve Nicol has blamed Chelsea midfielders Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez for the 2-1 loss to Aston Villa. He believes the two need to be doing well and cannot hide behind the inexperience tag.
Speaking on ESPN FC, Nicol said that Enzo Maresca needs to hold them accountable and have a word with their failure to control matches. He believes that the defensive pairing of Trevoh Chalobah and Benoit Badiashile was also an issue for the Blues and said:
“I hate this line about Chelsea being young. Sanchez is 27, Cucurella is 28, you have two central midfielders who are 24, but they have as much experience as anybody. Reece James is 26, so I’m past the young thing. At the end of the day, particularly Enzo Fernandez and Moises (Caicedo) in the middle of the park, it all starts with them.”
“Now, I do believe they have problems at centre-back and I think that doesn’t help. But the guts of the team are those two, and, in my opinion, those are the two who should be sorting things around them and behind them when they are ahead and stopping the opposition from playing and then getting the result. You play your football, you get ahead but then you have to be smart. And I’m sorry, these two guys have had enough experience. World Club champions, they’ve won a European title. How much experience do you need?”
“I think Maresca has to get a hold of the two of them and speak to them and make sure that when they are ahead and they are trying to see the game out, that they do certain things at certain times of the game. You can’t just keep playing, keep playing, keep playing, then lose a goal and just keep playing. No, sometimes you just have to do the dirty stuff and make sure you get over the line, and those two guys for me is where this starts.”
Chelsea have just one win in their last five Premier League matches, which includes two losses. They have now slipped out of the Top 4, sitting fifth and 13 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Chelsea set for midfield reinforcement in the summer
Chelsea have been linked with a move for Elliot Anderson by The Athletic. David Ornstein has reported that the Blues are keeping tabs on the Nottingham Forest star, while Simon Johnson added that the move is due to injury issues with Romeo Lavia.
Anderson has been in fine form for the Forest and has Manchester City, Manchester United, and Liverpool interested in signing him. However, an exit in the January window has been ruled out, even if any club offers over £100 million.
Lavia joined Chelsea in 2023 but has played just 30 times for the club due to injury. He was dealing with a hamstring issue and is currently out with a muscle strain.