-
)
Bundesl
12 Dec 21:30
)
UnionBerli
)
RBLeipzig
- - -
)
Serie A
12 Dec 21:45
)
Lecce
)
Pisa
- - -
)
Ligue 1
12 Dec 21:45
)
Angers
)
Nantes
- - -
)
LaLiga
12 Dec 22:00
)
RealSocied
)
Girona
- - -
LaLiga
13 Dec 15:00
)
AtleticoMa
)
Valencia
- - -
Serie A
13 Dec 16:00
)
Torino
)
Cremonese
- - -
Bundesl
13 Dec 16:30
)
BorussiaMo
)
Wolfsburg
- - -
Bundesl
13 Dec 16:30
)
EintrachtF
)
Augsburg
- - -
Bundesl
13 Dec 16:30
)
St.Pauli
)
FCHeidenhe
- - -
Bundesl
13 Dec 16:30
)
Hoffenheim
)
HamburgerS
- - -
)
Premier
13 Dec 17:00
)
Liverpool
)
Brighton&a
- - -
Premier
13 Dec 17:00
)
Chelsea
)
Everton
- - -
LaLiga
13 Dec 17:15
)
Mallorca
)
Elche
- - -
Ligue 1
13 Dec 18:00
)
Rennes
)
Brest
- - -
Serie A
13 Dec 19:00
)
ParmaCalci
)
Lazio
- - -
Bundesl
13 Dec 19:30
)
BayerLever
)
FCKoeln
- - -
Premier
13 Dec 19:30
)
Burnley
)
Fulham
- - -
LaLiga
13 Dec 19:30
)
Barcelona
)
Osasuna
- - -
Ligue 1
13 Dec 20:00
)
Metz
)
ParisSaint
- - -
Serie A
13 Dec 21:45
)
Atalanta
)
Cagliari
- -
ENZO MARESCA INSISTS CHELSEA ARE NOT TITLE CONTENDERS YET; "ASK AGAIN IN MARCH."
Despite a heroic 1-1 draw with Arsenal, Maresca and club insiders agree title talk is premature. The top four are the current, primary targets.
We sometimes try to get Chelsea to talk about winning the title, sure.
The reporters who often go to Enzo Maresca’s press meetings probably don't bring it up every week. By now, we all know what he'll say and the look he'll give you. But once in a while, a new person will give it a shot.
Hi Enzo, hope you're doing well. I wanted to ask, is Chelsea in the title race, and can you win it?
The latest try came on Sunday at Stamford Bridge. It was as good a time as any, since they had just tied Arsenal 1-1, even though they played most of the game with only 10 players, after Moises Caicedo, their key player, was sent off.
Doesn't your game today prove you can challenge Arsenal and the others?
Maresca started his answer by apologising for being boring and repetitive. He told us Chelsea isn't going to win the title. He said it's too early to talk about that, mostly this season. It's only November, December, he said. "Ask again in February or March," he said.
Chelsea tied the league leaders, even after playing most of the game with 10 players. But Maresca says that it’s still too early to talk about their chances of winning the Premier League.
So, the Magic 8 Ball was shaken, and like before, it said, Ask again later.
But Maresca won't be scolded by his bosses for his view because they agree with him. Like actors who won't say Macbeth in theatres because they think it will bring bad luck, nobody at Chelsea will mention the title right now.
Last season, people were a bit shocked when Maresca said Chelsea’s owners didn't tell him to finish in the top four. This is different.
Anyone who says they’re in the title race this early in the season is wrong. Unless you actually win, there's not much to gain from saying you're going to go for it.
Instead, Chelsea wants to keep doing what they're doing and see where it leads them. Their main goal is to finish in the Premier League’s top four. They’ll see where that leaves them.
If they’re still close to Arsenal and Manchester City in February, Maresca might change his mind. But until then, it’s, You’re saying that, but we’re not thinking that. Next question.
Chelsea insiders think Arsenal and City are the teams to beat this season, and it’s hard to argue. Arsenal added more players to their team in the summer, as they need to compete, and they’ve finished second in the last three seasons.
City has Erling Haaland, who can make a big difference, and they’ve been there, done that, winning six titles since 2017 under Pep Guardiola.
The Daily Mail Sport put up a poll on social media yesterday, asking, Do you think Chelsea can actually win the title this season? After 1,000 votes, it was exactly 50-50. After a few hundred more votes, it was 49.5 per cent saying yes and 50.5 per cent saying no.
The fans are split, and me? After thinking about it, I'd have to say no for now. They're getting closer, I think, but this season feels too soon.
They're the youngest team in Premier League history. They're still learning to play together after Chelsea decided to rebuild their attack in the summer, which isn't normal after finishing fourth.
They have a 45-year-old head coach who, while clearly a good tactician, will tell you he's still learning.
They’ve been a bit naive at times, like with the four red cards they’ve gotten in the Premier League this season. If they keep this up, they’ll break Sunderland and QPR’s record of nine in a season.
They don’t have a Haaland-type goalscorer because they’re thinking long-term instead of spending big on one proven player.
There’s nothing wrong with that, but signing young players means you have to be patient. They’ve shown they can play well against Arsenal and Barcelona in those big games, but then they have those bad days, like the loss to Sunderland and the tie with Qarabag.
Chelsea’s next Premier League games are against Leeds, Bournemouth, and Everton, and while they look like wins on paper, it’s still not clear how they’ll do as the favourites.
Chelsea has a lot going for them. The way they handled not having Cole Palmer—winning 10 of their 13 games when he was hurt—was good to see.
He’s back now, and Maresca has been rotating players all season to get ready for the busy schedule ahead, using all the players he has.
They’re getting used to winning after the Club World Cup win in the summer.
Right now, it doesn’t feel like enough to be the best team in England after 38 games, but hey, ask me again in February or March.
ENZO MARESCA EXPLAINS: WHY ESTEVAO WILLIAN STAYED ON THE BENCH DURING 2-1 UCL DEFEAT
Unused sub Estevao Willian showed his desire to win by kicking a cone in frustration after Chelsea conceded to Atalanta, a moment Maresca explained was due to an injury change.
Estevao Willian's disappointment was clear during Chelsea's 2-1 loss to Atalanta in the Champions League. The 18-year-old winger spent the whole match on the bench Tuesday night as Chelsea blew their lead.
Joao Pedro scored first for Chelsea, slipping the ball past Marco Carnesecchi. Even though they had a few more good chances, the Blues didn't score again before Atalanta tied the game.
Late in the game, Charles De Ketelaere scored, his shot deflecting past Robert Sanchez. With this loss, Chelsea has dropped out of the top eight and hasn't won in their last four games.
Estevao really wanted to play in Bergamo, but he remained a substitute. He warmed up in the second half and was near the field when Gianluca Scamacca scored the tying goal.
A fan caught Estevao's reaction to the goal and posted it on X (the social media platform previously known as Twitter). The young player was clearly upset when Atalanta scored, grabbing his shirt and saying something to himself before kicking a training cone.
He went back to warming up with Jorrel Hato, Andrey Santos, Marc Guiu, and Facundo Buonanotte. Even during this tough moment, Estevao's desire to play, his love for the game, and his will to win were obvious.
After the game, Maresca told reporters why Estevao didn't play. Tosin [Adarabioyo] had to come on because Wes [Fofana] needed to be subbed out; that was a change we had to make, the Chelsea coach said.
If we had another substitution available, Estevao or Andrey [Santos] probably would have played. But that change changed our plan for the game a bit.
Maresca talked about the difficulties of rotating the starting lineup: Tonight, our starting eleven included eight or nine players who also played against Tottenham, Barcelona, Wolves, and Arsenal.
We had eight or nine players who played in most of these matches. So, the five changes we made compared to the Bournemouth game were different.
But if you look at the team, we had eight or nine players who also played against Barcelona, Arsenal, Tottenham, Wolves, you know, those types of games. These are the players who are playing almost every game.
About the results, Maresca commented, "After we conceded, we lost some control of the match." In the first half, we scored a goal, allowed some chances, but also created a few of our own.
In the second half, we had two good opportunities to score another goal. But after they scored to tie the game, we lost control again, and then they scored a second time.
I think we could have stopped both goals. They were easy goals to avoid.
JOE COLE DEMANDS EXPERIENCE: CHELSEA'S COLLAPSE AFTER ATALANTA LOSS IS 'DISAPPOINTING'
Following a major loss to Atalanta, former Chelsea star Joe Cole highlights the team's need for experienced leaders to navigate tough matches.
After Chelsea's loss to Atalanta in the Champions League, Joe Cole made it clear what he thinks the team needs. Their recent form has been really disappointing, he said.
Just weeks ago, after they crushed Barcelona 3-0, people thought Enzo Maresca's team could go far in both the Premier League and Champions League.
But since then, Chelsea hasn't won four straight games. They've dropped to fifth place in the Premier League, eight points behind Arsenal.
On Tuesday, Joao Pedro put Chelsea ahead against Atalanta, but the home team came back with two goals in the second half to win 2-1.
This loss puts Chelsea in 11th place in the Champions League, and they'll likely fall even further after Wednesday's games.
Cole said Chelsea's performance in Italy was really disappointing. He believes that his old club needs to add some experienced players to Maresca's squad.
Since Todd Boehly took over in 2022, Chelsea has spent a ton of money, but they've mostly signed young players with potential rather than established stars.
It’s really disappointing, Cole told TNT Sports after the 2-1 defeat. Chelsea played well in the first half and got the first goal.
But they looked shaky after that, and you could see their weaknesses. It’s frustrating.
They played great against Barcelona, but they haven't kept that up, with three poor performances since then.
I keep thinking that they need more experienced players to help them get through tough games.
The coaches probably told them what to expect tonight, but it helps to have someone who's been there before on the field.
Chelsea isn't quite there yet. They show flashes of potential and have some great games, but then they have games like tonight where they just don't play well.
This weekend is very important because they haven't won in four games. They have to win against Everton.
Steve Sidwell, another former Chelsea player, added, The first half was even, but Chelsea looked disorganised in the second half, maybe because of the changes they made.
They seemed a bit off, and if you give good players time and space, they'll make you pay.
After this disappointing result in Italy, Chelsea's chances of qualifying for the Champions League are uncertain.
Maresca's team will play Pafos at home in their next European game on January 21, followed by a game against Napoli the following week.
When asked about Chelsea's chances in their last two games, Cole said, You'd expect them to beat Pafos at home, which would set up a huge game at Antonio Conte’s Napoli.
That game will be important. You don’t have to finish in the top eight, but you want to avoid playing extra games because the Premier League is tough.
Read More News