Maresca claims Chelsea matched Man City despite comfortable defeat

Enzo Maresca insisted Chelsea were equal to the masterful Manchester City in the aftermath of Sunday’s 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge.

The Italian started his Blues tenure with a loss as Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic scored in either half for the Premier League champions in their 2024-25 opener.

Chelsea mustered 1.23 expected goals (xG), however, to City’s 0.82 and almost drew level when Nicolas Jackson had a strike ruled out for offside on the stroke of half-time.

Jackson was again denied by Ederson after the interval, while Enzo Fernandez’s cross would have found debutant Pedro Neto for a tap-in if not for Rico Lewis’ late intervention.

Former Leicester City boss Maresca believes his side matched City’s efforts, yet the game was decided by the quality of Pep Guardiola’s team in both boxes.

“I think we competed very well for much of the game,” former City development coach Maresca told Sky Sports. “We were similar if not better.

“The performance was there but we didn’t take the chances. Probably the big difference was inside the box. I’m quite happy in terms of performance.

“For me, the important thing is to create chances. We didn’t score but we created chances. The first goal for them was almost offside, we almost scored.

“These things change results but the performance was good overall. It was quite clear, you can see a team trying to keep the ball and dominate.

“We were against the champions. We will continue and win games. They are a master in this kind of moment.

“They are a master of keeping hold of the ball. The performance was there and that is the main thing. You can see how they managed the ball.

“In terms of chances, we had the same. Keeping the ball was more or less there. We don’t like to lose. We just need to continue.”

It ends in defeat for the Blues. #CFC | #CHEMCI pic.twitter.com/xCEMOh6nuj

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 18, 2024

Maresca’s maiden match in charge at Stamford Bridge was clouded by his decision to leave out Raheem Sterling, whose representatives then issued a statement demanding “clarity” over the forward’s future.

Sterling had featured on the opening matchday of the last 11 Premier League seasons for Liverpool, City and Chelsea, but was omitted from the squad along with Ben Chilwell, Romelu Lukaku and Conor Gallagher.

Maresca insisted the decision was based off “technical” aspects before the game, and reiterated that sentiment following the disappointing defeat.

“To be honest, I didn’t see the statement,” Maresca said. “I have nothing to say. It was a tactical decision, no more than that.

“In the next day, we will clarify in case we need to. I have been clear, it’s a tactical decision. I didn’t see it.”