After a disappointing FA Cup exit to Brighton & Hove Albion, Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca fumed and reiterated that his players must learn to win matches that are decided by fine margins.
Chelsea were eliminated 2-1 at the Amex Stadium, having taken the lead through an own goal by Bart Verbruggen, which put Chelsea ahead inside five minutes.
However, that advantage lasted just seven minutes as Georginio Rutter leveled with a well-placed header. Early in the second half, Kaoru Mitoma struck the hosts’ second.
In his post-match interview, Enzo Maresca described the event as a shame:
‘It’s for sure a shame, no doubt,’ Maresca reflected after the contest. ‘We need to learn how to win games 1-0. I’ve said it many times.
‘In the same way, in the last game against West Ham, we were losing but in the end, we won 2-1. That is part of the season, part of football—sometimes you are down and win, and sometimes it happens like tonight.
‘But I said already to the players weeks ago – and said again tonight – that as a team, we need to learn to win games 1-0. That is what big teams do.’
Arguably, Chelsea’s season may have hit a setback, as they have now been confirmed to have exited the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup, with no possibility of winning the English Premier League.
