Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance, even though they were held to a frustrating goalless draw at Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon, Soccernet.football reports.
A win would have temporarily taken the Blues to the top of the Premier League table ahead of Tottenham’s clash with Liverpool, but Everton’s resilient display ended Chelsea’s nine-match winning streak across all competitions.
Despite recording 12 shots, Chelsea managed their lowest expected goals ratio in 17 Premier League matches this season and the fourth-lowest expected goals ratio this term for a team attempting 12 or more shots.
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While Maresca’s men dominated possession throughout the game, they struggled to create clear chances. However, the Italian boss commended his players, describing the performance as an improvement on their 2-1 victory over Brentford the previous week.
“I am very happy because the performance of the boys was fantastic,” Maresca told BBC Sport.
“Sometimes you have to play a different game, and we are learning to play a different game. They are one of the best teams in Europe in terms of clean sheets.
“I said to the players I was more happy than [last week’s] game at Brentford [Chelsea won 2-1], we tried everything.”
Chelsea will be back in action on Boxing Day when they host fellow Londoners Fulham, who were also held to a 0-0 draw by Premier League strugglers Southampton on Sunday. It promises to be a mouth-watering clash at Stamford Bridge as both clubs will be eager to return to winning ways.
