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Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca explained that his players’ resilience in difficult conditions outweighed the disappointment of two points lost after his team’s 0-0 draw with Everton.
The Blues had to fight to preserve parity at a windy Goodison Park on Sunday. After creating the best chances in a tight first half, Chelsea depended on the performance of their goalkeeper Robert Sánchez as Everton came close to breaking the deadlock in the second 45 minutes.
A goalless draw denied Chelsea the chance to temporarily overtake Liverpool at the top of the Premier League, but Maresca could only see the positives after the match. In fact, the Italian manager insisted that Sunday’s 0-0 draw was more impressive than Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Brentford last weekend.
“I’m absolutely happy,” Maresca smiled. “I just told the players that I’m happier today than I was in the Brentford game. The reason is that I was quite worried about today’s game; a complicated game, a complicated stadium, a complicated team.”
Enzo Maresca (right) was pleased with his Chelsea players on Sunday / Lewis Storey/GettyImages
Everton may be mired in a relegation fight, but Sean Dyche’s side are no pushovers. Sunday’s shutout ensured the Toffees have seven clean sheets this season, the most in the Premier League.
“Defensively they are superior,” continued the optimistic Chelsea coach. “They are one of the five best teams in Europe in terms of clean sheets. You struggle to create chances against them and it wasn’t an easy game. You have to deal and learn to play different games; long balls, seconds.” Balls, set pieces. Football is not only what we do with the ball, but also how you defend and handle it.
“As I said, today I am happier than in the Brentford game. Of course, I prepared the game as always to try to win it, but sometimes there is also another team that tries to do the same, so today we are happy.”
Maresca would undoubtedly have been happier if Nicolas Jackson had converted either of his two opportunities in the first half. The mercurial striker looked wayward on Merseyside, leaving Chelsea four points behind a Liverpool side who emphatically took advantage of their chances against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
