“After reviewing…” – Enzo Maresca admits to mistakes which made Chelsea fans furious

Chelsea have lost their last two Premier League games after red cards, and while Enzo Maresca can only do so much to stop his players making bad decisions which get them sent off, his response in the two games has been widely criticised.

In his press conference today ahead of the game against Benfica in the Champions League tomorrow, Maresca held up his hands and admitted to having got things wrong.

Maresca admits he “could have done better”

Enzo Maresca on the touchline at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

“First of all, for sure, I think after reviewing the last two games, I could have done better in terms of decisions. No doubt,” the manager said.

“But also for me, it is like a learning process to play with 10 players. For any manager it is not something normal but it happens sometimes. In almost six months, we lost five games and four of them had red cards. The only game we lost eleven versus eleven was Bayern Munich away.

“Compared to last season, we all improved, the players have more experience. Me personally as a manager, I feel better than last year because I am learning. There are things for me to learn, like playing with 10 players. It is all part of the process.”

We hope that’s all true – and we hope to see it reflected in some improved performances soon.

Defender decision stands out as an error

It’s an interesting confession from a man who sometimes can be pretty intransigent. His decision to take off a defender as well as bring on a replacement goalkeeper in the game against Manchester United was particularly egregious.

Now he’s thought about it and learned from it, we hope he makes a different decision next time. But first, let’s try and keep eleven players on the pitch for a while please.