Enzo Maresca blasts careless Chelsea after 3-1 defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion
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Chelsea's Pedro Neto reacting during their shock 3-1 English Premier League defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge on Sept 27.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – Enzo Maresca warned Chelsea to stop “giving away presents” after their latest red card played a key role in a shock 3-1 defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge on Sept 27.
The Italian’s English Premier League side were leading through Enzo Fernandez’s 24th-minute header, when Blues defender Trevoh Chalobah was dismissed for a poor tackle on Diego Gomez.
His 53rd-minute red card for denying a goalscoring opportunity put Chelsea in an awkward position, and they collapsed in the final stages as the visitors struck three times.
Danny Welbeck equalised in the 77th minute and Maxim de Cuyper’s header put Brighton in front in stoppage time.
The substitute was left unmarked to nod the ball home after Mats Wieffer had turned Yasin Ayari’s cross back into the area.
Welbeck added the third goal in the final seconds to condemn Chelsea to a second successive Premier League loss.
On Sept 20, Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was sent off after four minutes of a 2-1 loss at Manchester United.
For the second time in seven days, Maresca was left searching in vain for answers to Chelsea’s habit of gifting opponents the advantage with their lack of discipline and poor defending.
“The message (in the dressing room) was clear,” he said. “Against any team in the Premier League, you cannot continue to give away presents.
“We are giving away presents. The red card is a big mistake because the game completely changed.”
Chelsea had started well and took the lead when Moises Caicedo slipped the ball to Reece James, whose cross was nodded in at the far post by Fernandez.
Chalobah’s red card changed the momentum, after a poor pass from Andrey Santos prompted the centre-back to make a crude challenge on Gomez in a bid to stop him advancing on goal.
“It’s a tough one because we were in control of the game,” Maresca said.
“We scored one, we could have scored more. We had so many shots first half, 70 per cent of possession – everything was fine.
“Then suddenly because of our mistake, with the red card the plan completely changed.”
Meanwhile, Thomas Frank said the Premier League is “relentless” after his Tottenham Hotspur side needed Joao Palhinha’s stoppage-time strike to salvage a 1-1 draw at home to cellar dwellers Wolverhampton Wanderers in the late match.
The visitors, who had lost all of their previous five league games, were on course for a deserved win through Santiago Bueno’s goal on 54 minutes.
However, Palhinha provided the quality Tottenham had lacked all night with a brilliant finish four minutes into added time to snatch a point.
“Of course, we’d like the three points but it’s good to get one. It’s a reminder this league is relentless,” said Frank.
“I think the foundation is in a good place. Defending well, working hard, running hard. The offensive part of it is the thing we have to add layers to.” AFP
