Maresca stands by Chelsea rotation plan after Brentford draw

Chelsea brag Enzo Maresca stood by his squad enactment aft a goalless gully with Brentford connected Sunday.

There was thing to abstracted the 2 sides arsenic Brentford held connected to registry their archetypal location cleanable expanse of the play successful the Premier League.

Yoane Wissa came adjacent for the Bees, drilling a almighty changeable into the broadside netting aboriginal connected arsenic Chelsea laboured done a sluggish archetypal half.

Maresca started Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson and Pedro Neto connected the bench, though the trio came connected to pb a much-improved show aft the break, though it was not capable for Chelsea to assertion the 3 points.

Palmer astir struck the glory changeable with the last footwear of the game, but his curled effort skimmed implicit the apical of the crossbar.

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, Maresca explained his rotation policy.

“The crushed wherefore is we played Thursday nighttime and not each of them were 100%,” helium said.

“The thought was to commencement successful 1 mode and decorativeness different way. The program astir worked.”

In the archetypal half, the Blues managed conscionable 4 shots astatine an expected goals worth of 0.49. In the second, owing successful ample portion to Maresca’s substitutions, those numbers roseate to 17 shots astatine an xG of 0.83.

Maresca was blessed with the show contempt Chelsea being embroiled successful a choky contention for the Champions League places.

“I deliberation wide we played a bully game. We played Thursday night, it was a tricky game, sunny day. They tried to termination the tempo of the game. We did capable to win, we changeable implicit 20 times,” helium added.

“The lone happening we missed was the extremity but I’m blessed with the performance.”

Chelsea registered 21 shots, 5 of them connected target, successful yet different mediocre effect connected the road. The Blues are present winless successful each of their past 8 distant Premier League matches (three draws, 5 losses), scoring conscionable 3 goals successful full during that time.

Goalless. #CFC | #BRECHE pic.twitter.com/uaxVsxhqBY

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 6, 2025

Speaking connected his side’s distant form, Maresca added: “I deliberation we started the play winning galore games distant and we struggled astatine home. Now it is the different way.

“To get apical 4 oregon apical five, combat for the title, you request the close balance. Overall successful presumption of numbers, we are determination since the start.

“To beryllium honest, I didn’t hole the crippled contiguous reasoning it’s been a agelong clip since we triumph distant and we request to win.”

Chelsea volition present displacement absorption from the Premier League to the Conference League, successful which they instrumentality connected Legia Warsaw successful the archetypal limb of their quarter-final connected Thursday, with a location fixture against Ipswich Town awaiting them adjacent weekend.