Chelsea Lost Sharpness And Difficult To Win, Enzo Maresca Frustration

Chelsea failed to win due to lack of clinicality. Chelsea players Cole Palmer and Jadon Sancho celebrated a goal in the match against Crystal Palace. (X/@ChelseaFC)

JAKARTA - Chelsea again failed to get full points after being held by Crystal Palace 1-1 in the London Derby in the English Premier League. The failure to win frustrated manager Enzo Maresca.

The result was disappointing because Chelsea lost points towards the end of the match which was actually worth winning. In a duel at Selhurst Park Stadium, London, Saturday, January 4, 2025 evening WIB, Chelsea already took the lead through Cole Palmer.

But the chance to win eventually ran out after Jean-Philippe Mateta brought Palace to level 1-1 in 82 minutes. This is for the fourth time in a row Chelsea have only been able to draw after a 2-1 win against Brentford.

The failure to defeat Palace made Maresca disappointed and frustrated. Moreover, the Blues only face opponents who are at the bottom and are trying to improve their rankings so they are not relegated.

Maresca said Chelsea's front line was less clinical, making it difficult to add goals to ensure victory. Even forward Nicolas Jackson actually had a good chance to kill the opponent sooner. But that opportunity was wasted.

"We should have won the game. Between the first and second half, we created so many chances and it was already able to win the game," said Maresca.

"The problem is, in football you have to play clinically because the game is always open," he said.

The less sharp front sector made Chelsea's perfoma like a roller accident. They had set a brilliant record by winning five consecutive wins so Chelsea moved up to second place overshadowing Liverpool.

But they then experienced a decline and even lost 2-0 against Ipswich Town. According to Maresca, the team must be sharper and able to create many chances in order to score goals.

"I always say it's important to create chances. Creating chances means you've done the right thing," said Maresca.

"Sometimes you create chances and score goals. Sometimes you only make one chance and score one goal. You could even use 10 chances to score two goals," he said.

The draw against Palace made Chelsea's position unchanged. They are ranked fourth with points 36 or nine points adrift of Liverpool who lead the standings.

Meanwhile, Palace, who pocketed 21 points, was ranked 15. They are three strips above the relegation zone.