Enzo Maresca responds to Reece James worrying Chelsea admission
Some shocking comments from the skipper.
Enzo Maresca disagreed with Reece James’ suggestion that his Chelsea side disrespected the Conference League following last night’s defeat against Legia Warsaw.
The Blues progressed to the semi finals of Europe’s third tier competition where they will face Djurgarden but, in truth, it was another dispiriting night at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea already had one foot in the last four following last week’s 3-0 win in Poland, but a 2-1 defeat on home soil did little to lift the mood among an increasingly discontented fanbase.
Maresca fielded a strong side, with the likes of Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson and skipper James all starting but Chelsea again looked a shadow of the team who appeared to be in Premier League title-winning contention at the halfway point in the season.
The home crowd made their feelings known, as they did when they jeered during last Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Ipswich, and James felt the crowd were right to object to such a dismal showing.
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Reece James makes shock Chelsea admission
‘It was a poor performance,’ conceded the skipper. ‘We had a 3-0 lead – maybe that played a part in taking our foot off the gas.
‘Maybe we disrespected the competition today. If you don’t prepare right, you will pay. It’s going to affect the mindset.
‘It’s going to be in the back of people’s heads. I understand the frustration. Fans come to see excitement. We were frustrating to watch.’
Asked for his assessment of James’ claim in his post match press conference, Maresca countered that it was not a case of disrespecting a competition most Chelsea fans have little interest of being involved in, butconceded his side may have taken last night’s opponents too lightly.
He said: ‘Probably not the competition, but probably the other team tonight.
‘I think we respect the competition all season, probably tonight, as I said, because of the first result, 0-3, so you can manage in the wrong way the result, so for sure Reece is right, but more than the competition probably the opposite.’
Cole Palmer’s struggles continue
Given Chelsea’s commanding position in the tie it was, perhaps, a surprise to see Palmer named in the starting XI, especially given Chelsea face Fulham in a west London derby at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
The England international has now gone 15 games without scoring and Maresca had hoped that by including him against a team of Legia’s moderate standing he would rediscover some confidence.
‘Yeah, first of all the main target for them was to help them to build physical condition, so we decided to use both of them.
‘For sure if they are able to score, it could be a good boost for them, but for me probably we managed in the wrong way the first result there.
‘The good thing is again, we have six Premier League games that are very important for us, fortunately we rotate players, and this is for us in this moment very important.’
