Chelsea can kiss the Premier League title goodbye after failing to win for a third straight game on Monday, ending 2024 and the first half of the season with a 2-0 defeat away to relegation-threatened Ipswich.
IPSWICH 2-0 CHELSEA - Highlights, recap & analysis
For the third straight game, the Blues (4th place - 35 points) were flat and too easy to play through without Romeo Lavia at the heart of midfield. Enzo Maresca’s side won five games in a row to get to within two points of leaders Liverpool on Dec. 15, but have just one point and one goal in three games since. Don’t expect him to be overly excitable when he speaks to the press tonight.
Enzo Maresca reaction — What did Chelsea boss say after loss to Ipswich?
“Strange game in terms of creating many chances and we could’ve scored many, but they saved goals on the line or great saves from the keeper. We could do many things better, like defend better in some moments.”
“We had chances with Joao [Felix] and Noni [Madueke], so it’s not about the striker. Sometimes you create chances and it doesn’t go for you.”
“Then I think the second goal killed the game a little bit. Sometimes when you create so many chances, the post, the VAR, the ‘keeper saves or the defenders that block the shot, sometimes it has to go in that way.
“It’s a shame because it was another chance for us but congratulations to them because probably when you save so many shots on the line, the goalkeeper, the body, the desire from them was very high.”
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“No, tonight’s game, I don’t think it’s physical or condition. When you play and you don’t create chances, you don’t create nothing, and you are not dangerous, then you can say we probably we struggled physically, we are not good enough, or we are not fresh.
“But when you create so many chances, the post, the amount of chances, the VAR; I think we have so many chances in the first half. In the second half, we started in the same way. We have two clear chances and then the second goal kills the game. It is just a matter that sometimes it is not the right day for us.”
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“We expected this kind of moment in the season. This type of moment, it is almost impossible to have a season without this. Not anyone in this room expected us to be where we are. It also shows we are far from competing consistently and being there with the best teams in England. We have to be satisfied where we are, but we need to improve.”
“We made four changes from the last game because they all deserve to play. Now we’ve finished the first part of the season, no one expected us to be where we are. We are in a good position, but we can do many things better. It’s a long race.”
