Maresca pleased Chelsea ‘mostly’ controlled Brentford win

Enzo Maresca says his Chelsea deserved to beat Brentford, despite a shaky finish at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues won 2-1 but had their backs turned in the last 10 minutes after Bryan Mbeumo pulled a goal back and Marc Cucurella was sent off.

Chelsea took the lead through their full-back just before half-time, who headed into the net after a flurry of crosses from the hosts put the Bees under serious pressure.

It looked like the Blues would rue their missed opportunities, especially Nicolas Jackson, who missed the absolute man of the match.

With an open goal to aim for, his first-time cross flew over the goal and into the stands.

However, the Senegalese international achieved his goal in the 80th minute, hooking the ball to Enzo Fernandez and firing into the corner.

Cucurella gifted Brentford possession and Mbeumo capitalized by slotting the ball past Roberto Sanchez with just minutes remaining.

🔵📈 Enza Maresce’s Chelsea is now 2nd in the Premier League. ✅ pic.twitter.com/CDa0NV8Fwb

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) December 15, 2024

The Spaniard was then dismissed after the final whistle to dampen proceedings a bit.

However, Maresca maintained a positive attitude at the post-match press conference.

He said: “We were in control of the game except for the last 10 minutes when we conceded. that’s normal.

“We created opportunities. We could have scored more. We deserved to win the game.”

“It’s all about the position. You have to be in the right position and if you are, you will have a chance.

“We worked with Marco in this game to arrive and be in the right position. We are very happy. It’s not something normal because he’s not a big defender. We worked all week on this solution and we were lucky.

“I said after the Tottenham game that he (Jackson) didn’t score, but he did the most important thing. The others were celebrating, and he was the only one going for the ball. He worked hard off the ball.

“Only two teams have conceded less than us. Defensively, we are not doing badly. We would like to finish with a clean sheet, but there is another team trying to score.”

He left with an exiting comment about the title race, adding: “It’s not about how many games we win. It is important to be realistic. There are things we have to do better. That’s why I said for myself that we are not ready.”