(Special) CHELSEA- Crucial tactical mistakes made by Enzo Maresca as Chelsea manager- (Analysed) PART 1
Srećko Šijaković 
Enzo Maresca has left Chelsea, and the new coach of the Blues from London will be the English manager Liam Rosner, the current coach of Strasbourg. The team will be entrusted to him, and the previous manager, Maresca, left the club on January 1, 2026.
Enzo Maresca and his tactics are a thing of the past at Chelsea. The Italian expert left the club after many setbacks in the English Premier League. The club’s ambitions in the Premier League were the highest and far greater than what Maresca could fulfil.
A misunderstanding occurred after catastrophic matches in the English Premier League. Poor results in the domestic league did not align with the ambitions of the club, and it became clear that Chelsea was not a significant factor in the Premier League. All of this led to Maresca’s dismissal, as he failed to fight for the English championship title in his second season at the club.
The key fixture that led to the sacking
Aston Villa was the decisive moment for the Italian manager on the bench of the famous English club. The defeat against Aston Villa after dominance in the first half and the three substitutions made by Emery were the nail in Maresca’s coffin at Chelsea.
Enzo Maresca was dismissed on January 1, and the message is clear regarding how little the Blues’ management and Todd Boehly himself supported him. Todd Boehly is the absolute ruler of Chelsea and the most powerful man in Chelsea’s ownership structure.
His efforts and desires for Chelsea to fight for the English Premier League title were not fulfilled, and Boehly quickly resolved the situation with the Italian manager and his contract.
The new Chelsea manager will be Liam Rosner, who will have a clear task to bring stability to the club and achieve an excellent result in the English Premier League. Boehly and his board are focused on the Premier League, and next year, Chelsea’s main objective will be winning the Premier League.
Chelsea’s task last year was fourth place in the English Premier League, and Maresca fulfilled it; however, the task from Boehly this season was at least a title challenge, and Enzo Maresca completely distanced the club from that goal.
The main reasons and biggest tactical mistakes Maresca has made at Chelsea.
The biggest tactical mistakes of Maresca in managing Chelsea
1)Overreliance on Pedro Neto on the right wing/exclusion of Estevao from the game.
Estevao Willian, Chelsea’s summer signing, was on the margins of the club and the coach Enzo Maresca. This talented footballer was hindered in his development and was far behind Pedro Neto in the English Premier League games.
Estevao Willian, a talented Brazilian footballer, is known for his very dynamic play, running, and dribbling. However, Enzo Maresca constantly suppressed him over Neto, and the Brazilian footballer wearing the Chelsea shirt is known for his dribbling from a standstill, quick changes of pace in dribbling, and beating defenders.
He would help Chelsea with dribbles and passes and could produce much. Certainly, much more than Neto did. Estevao Willian did not get enough space in the Premier League, and since his arrival at Chelsea, he could produce exactly what Maresca needed in PL important matches.
His first attempt and dribbles first-touch dribbles, and one important segment of Chelsea’s game was missing. With his one-on-one dribbles, Estevao Willian would have brought a great deal to the club and Chelsea’s play. However, Maresca did not insist on this segment of the game that could have brought him a lot.
Asked by the media about Estevao in August, Maresca said that he is excellent, but that Chelsea has other great players.
Enzo Maresca should have built his game on the offensive influence of Willian, who, with dribbles and extremely fast diagonal passes, could have left a mark and achieved a serious impact from the right-wing position.
Estevao Willian was on the bench while Pedro Neto started in the English Premier League. Pedro Neto is a book that has been read by English Premier League centre-backs, who know exactly how Pedro Neto will try to create chances.
The Portuguese player at Chelsea plays in an extremely one-dimensional way, and defenders in the Premier League know how to stop him.
Pedro Neto is not creative enough in one-on-one situations, while Estevao Willian is synonymous with creativity, and his influence on the right wing under Maresca in the Premier League was necessary. He is a player who at any moment can make a key difference through a dribble, a shot, or a key pass.. Pedro Neto is an uncreative player, and his use on the right wing was a key mistake by Enzo Maresca.
Estevao Willian should always have been ahead of Pedro Neto in the Premier League, and the constant insistence on Neto playing on the right wing resulted in every team facing Chelsea placing double and triple defensive blocks on Neto, successfully stopping him in his attempts to score or create chances for Chelsea.
Pedro Neto was easily neutralised, while Estevao Willian would have been a very strong asset to the club if only he had been given a role similar to the one he had at his previous club, Brazilian Palmeiras.
Basically, he was attempting and dribbling and attacking in one-on-one situations. But Maresca was not using him for that in the Premier League.
2) Maresca’s fundamental mistake concerns the midfield and the way Chelsea played this season. It is clear that football is based on midfield play and that the key position determining a team’s game is the midfield, especially the central midfielder.
Chelsea has Enzo Fernández in that position as the first choice, a midfielder whose task and preference are passing. Before the season, Maresca had Enzo Fernandez in that role, a dominant midfielder who is also good at deep passes from behind.
Enzo Fernandez is Chelsea’s strongest midfielder, whose passes from midfield toward Estevao Willian could have taken Chelsea to the top of the Premier League.
Enzo Fernandez played an excellent last season with Chelsea and played many matches, including the Club World Cup, entering this season exhausted. It is clear that he is not fresh and is not delivering his maximum this season. However, Maresca was also there last season and is personally responsible for the player not being in top form.
Enzo Fernández was injured this season while playing for the Argentine national team. In the absence of Cole Palmer, he was pushed into the attacking midfielder role in Maresca’s system, where he made many mistakes and became even more fatigued.
Enzo Maresca himself admitted the mistake by returning Fernandez to his central midfield position. As an attacking midfielder, the Argentine did not adapt because the tempo is much faster there, and his passing and decision-making in that area were nowhere near what Chelsea needed.
3) Andrey Santos, a Brazilian midfielder highly regarded in the French league while playing for Strasbourg, was a new summer signing for Chelsea. Maresca took him to the Club World Cup and stated during the tournament that Santos fits his preference as an attacking midfielder and that he sees great potential in him for that position.
However, Santos was moved to the number six role, and due to Maresca’s strong defensive preferences, Andrey Santos was left there as a substitute behind Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez, and even Lavia when fit.
Because of Maresca’s defensive orientation, he suppressed the Brazilian’s offensive potential, despite Santos being highly rated and attracting interest from many European giants.
According to Enzo Maresca’s assessments, Andrey Santos is a poor and average player. Yet last summer, more than half of Europe wanted the Brazilian midfielder, and he was highly rated by many managers.
4) Caicedo always played in midfield whenever he was fit. He is an extremely defensive midfielder, while Maresca could have fielded Enzo Fernandez, Santos, and other creative players with a vision and preference for attacking football.
Caicedo not only played every match but also had heavy defensive duties under Maresca, who turned him into a workhorse. We often saw Caicedo positioned as a centre-back or defensive anchor. He was always a defender extra on the pitch for Maresca.
5) Enzo Fernandez and Caicedo — that is Enzo Maresca. Chelsea built its identity and Maresca’s first-season success on the Caicedo–Enzo Fernandez midfield tandem. Chelsea played well and dominated possession early last season when both players were fresh.
With Caicedo’s enormous impact as one of the best defensive midfielders and Fernandez playing his natural role, it is clear how offensively sterile Enzo Maresca is as a manager.
The new players arrived in that position, but Maresca has always built his game on these two players since day one.
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