Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has defended the direction his team is heading, despite a worrying dip in form that has raised questions about the club’s chances of qualifying for the Champions League for a third consecutive season.
A 2–2 draw at Stamford Bridge against a struggling Ipswich side on Sunday saw Chelsea slip to sixth place in the Premier League table. Only a top-five finish guarantees a spot in Europe’s elite competition.
Maresca’s team has managed just five wins in their last sixteen league matches, a significant downturn after what seemed like a promising start to his time in charge at Stamford Bridge.
This has led to growing dissatisfaction among supporters, who have become increasingly vocal about their frustration with the Italian manager’s patient, possession-based style of play during his debut season.
Maresca even seemed to suggest that the fans’ reaction might have influenced goalkeeper Robert Sanchez’s decision to go long from a goal kick, which directly preceded Ipswich’s equalizing second goal.
While Chelsea finished the 2022/23 campaign in a disappointing twelfth place and then improved to sixth the following season, Maresca insists that tangible progress has been made since he took over.
“I think fans, they have to trust us, they have to trust the team, they have to trust the club, what we are doing now,” he said on Wednesday, ahead of Chelsea’s UEFA Conference League quarter-final second leg against Legia Warsaw.
“This season we spent almost all our season in the top four. I think it’s a big proof that the team is improving and is doing the right things.
“Now, is it enough? For me, no. Because I would like to fight with this club for titles, for the Premier League, for the Champions League. But at the same time, I think we have to be realistic and see that this team, this season, is improving. It’s there in the numbers.
“Now we are not in the top five, so we are not happy. We are going to try to finish there. But it’s proof that we are doing the right things.”
Maresca was on the verge of guiding Chelsea to the UEFA Conference League semi-finals, holding a comfortable 3–0 aggregate lead from the first leg. He indicated his intention to significantly rotate his squad for the match against the Polish side, prioritizing their upcoming Premier League fixture against Fulham on Sunday.
