Maresca satisfied with ‘fantastic’ Chelsea performance despite Goodison Park stalemate

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.

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.