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It was a weekend to forget for Chelsea and their fans as the Blues slumped to an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at home to Sunderland in the Premier League.
Despite Alejandro Garnacho giving Chelsea an early lead with his first goal for the club, they failed to hold on to it as the Black Cats managed to complete an impressive comeback in second-half stoppage time.
In hindsight, Chelsea had a number of causes for their defeat at the weekend, as several players were far from their best on the day.
However, former Chelsea star John Obi Mikel believes that Enzo Maresca did not help his team’s cause with his choice of substitutions in the second half.
With the score tied at 1-1 in the second half, Maresca decided to take off some of his best players, and that decision did not sit well with Mikel.
The former Chelsea midfielder slammed the current manager for his substitutions in the defeat at the weekend.
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John Obi Mikel slams Enzo Maresca’s substitutions against Sunderland
According to Mikel, Maresca made a poor decision by choosing to take off both Joao Pedro, 24, and Pedro Neto, 25, late in the game.
The timing of the substitutions has been criticised more than anything, as the duo were taken off in the 85th minute with Chelsea in search of a winner.
Speaking on The Obi One Podcast, Mikel said: “I’m a big, big fan of Enzo Maresca, but I just thought when we were chasing that game to win that game when it was 1-1 at home, you can’t take your best players out.”
“It doesn’t matter that they were not playing so great. Joao Pedro, Pedro Neto they were not playing so well, but you leave those players on the pitch. They will find a way to create a chance. They will find a way to win that game.”
“I just thought for him to substitute Pedro Neto out and Joao Pedro out, after that substitution, it was just flat, absolutely flat. There was nothing. We just couldn’t offer anything.”
While it's easy to understand the logic in Mikel’s comments, in Maresca’s defence, both Pedro and Neto were having an off day against Sunderland.
Given how flat Chelsea looked in attack at the weekend, the return of Liam Delap should bolster their squad in more ways than one.
The return of Delap will give Maresca a target man up top and allow the team to adopt a more direct approach to goal.
Chelsea news and related links
- Marc-Andre ter Stegen could join Premier League side on loan
- Enzo Maresca reveals when injured Chelsea star will return to action
- Enzo Maresca defends team selection following Chelsea's 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest
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