(Video): “Why did they build the team this way?” – ESPN pundit defends Maresca due to “mess” of a squad | OneFootball

Chelsea’s defeat to Aston Villa at the weekend was the lead-off point in the discussion about the game on the Gab and Juls show on ESPN today.

Enzo Maresca has been given a lot of the blame for how things have done, but as Gab Marcotti pointed out, a lot of blame needs to go to those above him too.

Chelsea squad construction “a mess” says ESPN pundit

Enzo Maresca speaks after Aston Villa defeat in crisp 4K.

“I think you have a serious issue in the way this team is constructed… at the back it’s a mess, it’s a revolving door. Chalobah is asked to carry that back four. Up front, Delap is a work in progress, Joao Pedro is not a centre forward to lead the line on his own… Marc Guiu is 19 and not ready,” Marcotti pointed out.

“So why did they send Nico Jackson away? Why did they build the team in this way? What options does Maresca actually have to make this team better? You can get away with having a centre forward like Joao Pedro if your wingers score, but none of these wingers score.”

These are all very good points, and while we all have our issues with Maresca, it’s important to keep in mind the big picture of what he’s actually working with in this squad. No wonder the coach is getting more frustrated as time goes on.

You can see their discussion of the game in the clip embedded here:

In other news…

Marc Cucurella has spoken about our recent tough patch, and claimed that actually Chelsea fans and players should be proud of a positive year overall.

Despite defeat in that game, Enzo Maresca has claimed that he saw a lot of positives in how the team played i the first 65 minutes. Let’s hope they can make it a 90 minute performance tonight.