Enzo Maresca has been on the receiving end of a lot of criticism coming out of Chelsea's defeat at the hands of Manchester United. Of course, Robert Sanchez's red card hurt the Blues, but the manager's decision to take off both Estevao and Pedro Neto, leaving a team a man down with no pace on the counter, might have been equally problematic for them at Old Trafford.
Also, with Chelsea's poor start to the season, questions are once again being asked about Maresca's ability to get the best out of this team. The Club World Champions have just won two of their six games so far in the 25/26 campaign and the Italian's selection decisions have been confusing, especially not giving Josh Acheampong a single minute since a solid performance against Crystal Palace on the opening day or not even bringing on Alejandro Garnacho against Manchester United, when the Blues needed a goal.
Now, Maresca has made an admission about Liverpool. And it will not go down well with Chelsea fans, especially this early in the season.
Maresca appears to believe that it might be impossible to catch Liverpool. We are in mid-September. As reported by Football London, the Italian said:
"If they continue in this way I think it is impossible to catch them, not just for us, but for all the clubs. They have been doing a fantastic job since last year, and the players they have decided to buy shows the intention of the club to go again for the Premier League and the Champions League, and that is quite clear."
Chelsea fans won't like Enzo Maresca's latest admission
Admittedly, Liverpool are already eight points ahead of Chelsea. And perhaps there is truth to that statement. But that is not what you want to hear from your manager this early in the season. It feels like another campaign is being written off before it has properly started.
How long do Chelsea plan to be stuck in this no man's land of the Premier League in the name of 'process' and 'progress'? With the amount of money that has been spent, they should be competing for every trophy on the calendar but they are nowhere near close to doing that.
Maresca's comments won't fill the fans with confidence that they will do so anytime soon either. Now, if they know that what Liverpool are doing is working, why do they never go out and sign some proven players, instead focusing on potential every time? At times, it feels like the club are more concerned about reinventing the wheel than winning.