(Reuters) – Chelsea will take positives from their loss at Liverpool and will not be deterred by a testing run of Premier League fixtures against Newcastle United, Manchester United and Arsenal, manager Enzo Maresca has said.
Chelsea are on a two-match winless streak which has dropped them to sixth in the standings with 14 points from eight games.
Despite losing 2-1 at Anfield, Maresca praised his players and said they are ready to face further challenges in a cut-throat competition like the Premier League.
“The Liverpool game was very good. We were good with the ball and without the ball,” Maresca told reporters ahead of Sunday’s home game against Newcastle.
“For sure there are many things we could do better. We could attack better in the final third. But the guys were brave trying to press man-to-man.
“We need to play against all of them. We have met Liverpool and now have three games in a row against Newcastle, Manchester United and Arsenal. But the Premier League is tough,” he added, pointing to Bournemouth’s win over Arsenal last weekend.
Maresca has a striker dilemma to deal with, however, with Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku vying to lead the line.
While Jackson has scored five goals to top the club’s scoring charts in the league, Nkunku has scored eight in all competitions having returned to fitness.
“We know Nicolas Jackson is very important for us. On the ball, he’s scoring, assists, and linking with his teammates. Off the ball, he’s working hard, pressing the way we want to press. He’s doing fantastic,” Maresca said.
“We have Christopher Nkunku also who is going to help us because the season is very long, we have so many games, and also the game plan can be more for Christopher than Nico. We can choose.”
Newcastle, who are two points behind in ninth, can leapfrog Chelsea with a win and Maresca was wary of their strength and physicality.
“Probably, they’ve been a bit unlucky, in the last game against Brighton (& Hove Albion, a 1-0 loss), but I think they deserve some more points,” Maresca said.
“The way they work, (they’ve had) many years together, it’s quite clear. I really like Newcastle and now is a chance for a team to do good because they are in a difficult (phase).”
(Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
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