Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has confessed to a tactical oversight that nearly jeopardised his team’s narrow 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.
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- Fernandez scored to give Chelsea the three points
- Lengthy VAR checks led to 12 minutes of stoppage time
- Maresca believes he was lucky to escape with his changes
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WHAT HAPPENED?
The Blues secured a vital three points at Stamford Bridge, thanks to a second-half header from Enzo Fernandez, but the closing moments were anything but straightforward for the hosts.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
With Chelsea clinging to their slender lead, Maresca withdrew forward Cole Palmer and goal-scorer Fernandez, bringing on Tosin Adarabioyo and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to shore up the defence and midfield, respectively. Only after making the changes did Maresca realise that 12 minutes of stoppage time had been signalled – largely due to extensive VAR reviews that had disallowed goals for both sides during the second half.
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WHAT MARESCA SAID
"We created chances enough in the first half, and then, to be honest, it has been my mistake because I did the change before I saw the extra time," Maresca told reporters.
"When I saw 12 minutes, I saw that probably was too early to make that kind of change. But fortunately, we won the game, and we are happy."
Despite his admission of a tactical error, Maresca was quick to heap praise on his players for their resilience and determination during the frantic finale.
"If you want to become a team, I think you need also to learn and to play in the way we played in the last 10 minutes: win a game in a dirty way," the Italian said.
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WHAT NEXT FOR CHELSEA?
Chelsea's next challenge comes quickly, with a short trip across London to face Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium on April 6.
