Maresca hints at title aim
Enzo Maresca believes Chelsea’s form in December will determine whether or not his team will be involved in the Premier League title race this season.
The Blues face six league fixtures over the course of December, starting with a trip to Leeds United this evening. Going into this latest round of top-flight fixtures, Chelsea sit six points behind leaders Arsenal following Sunday’s fiercely contested 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca has consistently quashed talk of his Blues side challenging for the title this season given we are only in December, but the head coach has now highlighted the significance of his team building some momentum this month – a period they have notoriously struggled in over the years.
From the past six seasons, Chelsea have accumulated just 56 points from a possible 102 and Maresca is aware of the Blues’ December woes. “I’m aware because I was here last year, even if the first game I think we lost was the 26th [December] against Fulham at home, since Fulham, we started to drop some points,” explained the Chelsea head coach.
“But not only for Chelsea, I think it’s complicated for any team, especially for the one that could also have the European competition because you play every three days. But the team that they are able to be consistent in December and January, they are the teams that are going to be there for the title.
“That’s why now the main focus is trying to be consistent in the next month. And then after that, if we are there, we want to be there and we compete, otherwise we’re going to set different targets.”
