Paul Merson believes Chelsea are nonetheless the identical facet as they have been below Enzo Maresca, however head coach Liam Rosenior insists there was a “clear change”.
Chelsea threw away a two-goal lead at Stamford Bridge to attract 2-2 with Leeds on Tuesday, lacking the prospect to earn a fifth consecutive Premier League victory and transfer into the highest 4 above Manchester United.
It was the primary time Rosenior dropped factors in a league recreation, having received the earlier 4, together with his solely defeats coming in each matches of their two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final in opposition to Arsenal – however Merson reckons there was little progress over the previous month.
“Chelsea haven’t changed since Enzo Maresca was there,” mentioned Sky Sports activities pundit Merson. “They cannot put a 90-minute performance together.
“They have been sensible within the first half [against Leeds], just like the Harlem Globetrotters. Palmer, Pedro, Santos, Fernandez – the motion. However then unexpectedly, they have not acquired that have.
“When it goes 2-1 after which 2-2, the following quarter-hour have been wasted. They have not acquired anyone to say: ‘Relax, we’ll get one other probability.’
“It fell to Palmer, two yards out and he sidefooted it over the bar. There is not any bobble. It occurs to the most effective. For those who requested him to place that over the bar, he’d discover it laborious. It is mind-blowing.
“All of a sudden, Chelsea have got some very difficult fixtures coming up. It’s going to be hard. It’s going to be a real fight. If Chelsea get into the Champions League positions with their run-in, I’ll hold my hands up and say, ‘fair play’.”
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Paul Merson is surprised that Cole Palmer missed from two yards for Chelsea in opposition to Leeds
Nevertheless, Rosenior reckons fifth-placed Chelsea have improved.
“I hope people can see the progression already, considering we’ve had 10 games in 30 days,” he mentioned.
“It’s a clear change and no disrespect to anything that’s happened before. There’s a change in the things I like to see, but what I really want to see is three points on the board every week.
“Genuinely, I can not keep in mind Leeds having a shot or a second within the recreation. A few of our soccer in possession, our press, our vitality, was every thing I needed to see. That makes it much more of a bitter tablet to swallow that we’ve not received the sport.”
Chelsea were unable to regain control of the match after Lukas Nmecha pulled a goal back from the penalty spot and soon conceded an equaliser.
“We have now to only ensure we handle moments and be skilled. I do not assume it is about reacting to setbacks,” added Rosenior.
“You are at all times going to have a spell within the recreation the place you are not on high. The ridiculous factor for us is that they’ve managed to attain two objectives in a five-minute interval.”
Rosenior has won seven of his 10 games in charge with his side scoring 24 goals, including five against Charlton in the FA Cup, but they have kept only two clean sheets. There has been no shortage of entertainment, roaring back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 against West Ham in their last home game.
“We performed some actually good groups. Leeds are on a great run of kind. They’re an excellent crew. We nullified every thing and confirmed we might create probabilities with our possession, which is a extremely optimistic factor.
“It’s just a real shame that because of six minutes where we didn’t take care of two moments, I’m not talking about a really good team performance and a win.
“I do not assume it was a tactical or structural subject on this recreation. I simply assume we made poor choices in key moments. I by no means, ever blame people. It is a crew second.
“I was frustrated after the second goal with a couple of things that I’ll show the players of why the momentum of the game changed. That’s a team thing. If we can just focus and concentrate for 90 minutes, this team has unbelievable potential, which you saw for probably 90 per cent of the game today.
“I am a month in. I really feel like I already know what we have to work on to enhance that. It is ensuring we get the time to do it.”
