Excuse FC: Enzo Maresca has LOST the Chelsea fans

Cameron Smith

• 14 Apr 2025 03:10 CDT
• 5 min read

Analysis

Chelsea have won six of their last nine games in all competitions, yet Enzo Maresca appears to have lost the support of almost the entire Stamford Bridge faithful.

The Italian oversaw a fantastic start to the 2024-25 campaign, with Chelsea challenging Liverpool for top spot in the Premier League table in early December, but their form since a 0-0 draw against Everton just days before Christmas has curtailed the promising start to Maresca’s tenure.

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His Leicester City side were somewhat found out during the second-half of their Championship-winning season last year and Chelsea have hit a similar roadblock in 2025.

The Blues have only scored four goals in their last five Premier League fixtures, and they required an Axel Tuanzebe own goal and a curling effort from Jadon Sancho to snatch a 2-2 draw against Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon after trailing by two goals at half-time.

Chelsea have looked blunt in attack since the turn of the year and their inability to turn possession into goals is starting to become a real concern amongst fans.

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Their place in next season’s Champions League is also a major doubt.

Rewind four months and Blues fans were singing “we’ve got our Chelsea back” while dreaming of a title challenge. Now, qualification for Europe’s elite club competition looks unlikely.

Chelsea have slipped to sixth place after their dismal draw versus Ipswich and with games against Fulham, Everton, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest still on the fixture list, they face an uphill battle to finish in the top five places in the Premier League table.

Has Enzo Maresca lost the Chelsea fans?

The Clearlake Capital era has shown glimpses of promise - such as the impressive signing of Cole Palmer and Moises Caicedo’s recent upturn in form - however it looks as though another season with no Champions League football may be on the cards for Chelsea.

Maresca has remained relaxed about the situation, but he may have already lost the support of Chelsea’s fanbase after some peculiar comments following his side’s draw against Ipswich.

The Blues boss appeared to blame the Stamford Bridge crowd for Ben Johnson’s 31st minute goal, with Robert Sanchez opting to go long with a goal kick due to the “environment” created by the fans.

Ipswich subsequently regained possession and seconds later, Johnson had made it 2-0.

Furthermore, Maresca once again insisted that his team “created enough to win the game.” The Italian is beginning to sound like a broken record with a statement of that ilk, with it repeatedly being used to justify Chelsea’s poor results in 2025.

Maresca said the same following Chelsea’s draw versus Brentford and their losses to both Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion.

Of course, he’s entitled to believe that his team deserves more than results have shown this year, but the excuses can’t keep flowing.

At some point, Maresca, and Chelsea themselves, must acknowledge they have an unreliable goalkeeper in between the sticks, a striker without a goal in his last 11 games and an extremely young squad without the experience needed in modern football.

After a promising start in west London, the atmosphere surrounding Maresca’s position at the club has certainly changed and supporters have begun to turn against him.

Following the draw versus Ipswich, one fan posted on X: "Enzo Maresca does not have the mentality to be at Chelsea. This is the reality. Poor mentality and we are playing poor football."

Another added: "We’re worse now than we were at the end of last season under Pochettino. We’re only going backwards under Maresca. If you still rate him, you’re not a Chelsea fan."

While a third said: "Anyone that believes Enzo Maresca is doing a good job is absolutely clueless."

Maresca could well be safe due to the fact Clearlake Capital may want to avoid another hiring process, but he needs a serious upturn in form to regain the support of the Chelsea fans.