After Qualifying From Uian Burnley, Chelsea Is Waiting For An Important Week To Face Barcelona And Arsenal

JAKARTA - This week could reveal a lot about what's realistic for Chelsea this season. In the next seven days, Barcelona and Arsenal will travel to Stamford Bridge for matches that will show their ability to compete closely with the world's best teams or highlight the weaknesses of the team that are still in the development stage.

In this case, Saturday's match, November 22, 2025, against Burnley in the first Premier League match after the international break was a test match.

The game didn't go smoothly, but they did what they had to do. Goals from Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez confirmed a 2-0 win.

Even so, any team with title ambition, no matter how small, must win an away game difficult against a newly promoted team. It was a test Chelsea was able to overcome.

"It was a tough game for various reasons. It was difficult after the international break, at 12.30 p.m., away against Burnley, always a tough game."

"However, with the way we compete, I am very happy. Coming here and not conceding is very difficult," said Maresca, who has accompanied Chelsea in the Premier League for the 50th game.

Silently, for at least a few hours, Enzo Maresca's side moved up to second in the Premier League standings.

That day did little to reveal about Chelsea. They lost defensive midfielder Moises Caicedo, who was backed up for a long trip to Ecuador last week. Without his presence, Burnley started the game well.

Nothing stands out from Chelsea in the first 30 minutes. Even so, even when football is not flowing, individual qualities remain, without the presence of Cole Palmer.

Marc Cucurella, who broke into the midfield of the left-back, made it difficult for Burnley throughout the match. He is also the opener.

He broke into the penalty box before returning the ball to winger Jamie Gittens, who had previously not moved much. An accurate cross from Gittens to the far post was headed in by Pedro Neto.

It was Chelsea's seventh header goal this season, the highest number with Arsenal. Only West Ham and Manchester United conceded more headers than Burnley's five goals.

Burnley's manager, Scott Parker, doesn't need to be reminded of how difficult it is to live in the Premier League, but it is another lesson about how difficult it is at this level.

"Overall, I feel very happy with the team's performance. In the first half, I think we are brilliant"

"Maybe one of the chances in the first half needed to be taken advantage of because the momentum changed slightly in the second half."

"Overall I'm happy, but I say that lightly because obviously we are disappointed. You played against high-quality players and most of our matches managed to overcome it very well. They were clinical," Parker said after a third successive defeat.

Burnley played well and created enough chances to score at least once. Parker lamented a golden opportunity that Zian Flemming failed to take advantage of.

While leaving the press conference after the match, the Burnley coach revealed that he would spend time at home, in front of the laptop to find out where the error lies.

Meanwhile, Chelsea took advantage of more chances. With a 1-0 position, the crowd at Turf Moor was tense. The match ended when Fernandez changed the score to 2-0 two minutes before dispersal.

It was a reply to the brilliant performance of the Argentine, who looked overwhelmed without Caicedo by his side.

The movement started with a risky pass from Sanchez. Neto was later involved in the Fernandez goal.

"It is very important to maintain momentum from before the international break," said Maresca.

Will they be able to keep pace with Arsenal and Manchester City will be revealed when they face leaders Mikel Arteta this weekend, to be precise Sunday, November 30, 2025.

After defeating Burnley, the match against Barcelona and Arsenal became an arena for Chelsea to show their seriousness this season.

After one defeat in 10 matches in all competitions, Maresca emphasized that there is still room for improvement and more to come.

In many ways, it's a perfect start to an important week. A win and a clean sheet.

Caicedo had enough rest, Reece James' fitness was maintained for 45 minutes before the planned turn, Neto became the center of creativity to replace Palmer.

"Now we will restore energy and continue the match Wednesday, November 26, 2025 (against Barcelona)."

"We are confident. We are confident because we played well. We should be able to do a lot better, that's for sure."

"We will prepare well for Tuesday (Wednesday morning WIB) and Sunday," said the Italian coach.