Chelsea’s weaknesses were once again exposed in the loss to Atalanta. If they don’t tighten up their game further, they will likely remain without a win in four games.
Talks of challenging for the Premier League title could be ignored unless Enzo Maresca’s young team starts to show strength. The humiliating defeat against Leeds was a wake-up call, but they learned little from it on Tuesday night.
It was the 44th Champions League game Chelsea have lost after scoring the first goal, and the first time since 2005 that they have lost away after leading at half-time.
Atalanta put pressure on Chelsea and made them rush, which was no surprise. As a friend of fellow Italian and Atalanta manager Raffaele Palladino, as well as how the Serie A club operates on its home ground, Maresca would have known exactly what was going to happen.
Making five changes in the draw against Bournemouth at the weekend didn’t help either. Some were injured or forced to take time off, while others were not. Rotation is key in such a congested schedule, and right now it’s working more against them than in their favor, especially at the back.
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Michael Dawson has given his verdict on Chelsea’s loss to Atalanta in the Champions League.
Maresca defended the change. “If you look at the five changes we’ve made compared to Bournemouth, it’s different,” he said. “But we had the same eight or nine players we had against Barcelona, Arsenal, Tottenham and Wolves. The players they play tonight are the players who have played in almost every game.”
The defensive rhythm was further disrupted when Trevor Chalobah was replaced by Wesley Fofana at half-time and then sent off with an injury. “Trev plays every game, so it was a bit of a deliberate decision, but it was also a risk-averse decision,” Maresca said. Also, Trev had a yellow card.
There were mistakes in both goals. Gianluca Scamacca easily missed a header and Marc Cucurella, concerned about Davide Zappacosta’s overlap, retreated while waiting for support from Benoît Badiacil, which led to Charles de Quetelaère’s shot and goal.
“Most of the time, if the full-backs come out (out), I try to pass (the ball) to the wing-backs,” the goalscorer said. “They kept falling back, so I shot.” Chelsea created a rod in her back.
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Manager Enzo Maresca felt that both goals could have been avoided had Chelsea lost control after conceding and lost to Atalanta in the Champions League.
Chelsea’s brightest player was 19-year-old Josh Achiampong, who kept the Blues in the game with a string of great tackles and blocks. Maresca said the teenager regretted not playing against Leeds but would have been delighted with his performance in Italy. Acheampong has the necessary guts.
Chelsea’s relegation has been a concern since talk of title contenders began following a heated draw with Arsenal and the demolition of Barcelona.
We lost far too easily to Leeds, who had learned their lesson from their last game against Manchester City and made the most of it. Bournemouth were also struggling to maintain their form and never looked like they were in danger of losing to Chelsea.
Maresca’s team is starting to look like it should: a group of naive, inexperienced and talented youngsters. Their game management and mentality needs to improve.
Some might also point out that the Blues’ season has been lengthened and their pre-season shortened, with the Club World Cup struggles of the summer beginning to have an impact. “After the first goal, we lost control of the game a little bit. Also, we’re playing every two days. We seem to be struggling a little bit,” Maresca said.
However, their hopes of avoiding a further overlap with the Champions League play-off fixtures were dealt a big blow with the defeat in Italy. “If we want to finish in the top eight, we need to win both,” Maresca said of the final games against Paphos and Napoli.
The next goal for this team is consistency in both performance and results. The Premier League and Champions League standings are incredibly close and every point counts. They haven’t learned how to squeeze results.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca (left) and defender Marc Cucurella
The visit to Everton this weekend will not be easy. They have won four of their last five Premier League games and have improved significantly under manager David Moyes, with their midweek fixtures uncontested.
There will likely be some rebound, and there may be more rotation, but this is the wrong time of the year to start a surge. Chelsea need to get back to winning ways quickly. It starts with growing up.
chelsea match schedule
Saturday 13th December: Chelsea vs Everton – Premier League, 3pm kick-off
Tuesday 16 December: Cardiff vs Chelsea – Carabao Cup quarter-final, 8pm kick-off
Saturday 20 December: Newcastle vs Chelsea – Premier League, kick-off 12:30pm
Saturday 27th December: Chelsea vs Aston Villa – Premier League, 5.30pm kick-off, live on Sky Sports
Tuesday 20th December: Chelsea vs Bournemouth – Premier League, 7.30pm kick-off, live on Sky Sports
