Enzo Maresca maintains that Enzo Fernandez is held in high regard by the Chelsea team following their loss to Real Madrid.

In the aftermath of Chelsea’s pre-season friendly defeat to Real Madrid, head coach Enzo Maresca emphasized the unity within the squad and the support for Enzo Fernandez. Despite the 2-1 loss, Maresca believes that the team has moved on from the summer controversy and showcased their backing for Fernandez, who wore the captain’s armband in the final 20 minutes of the match.

Maresca stated, “Enzo is one of the important players. To be honest, I think Reece (James) when we changed him, he gave the armband to Enzo. This shows how Enzo is respected inside the squad. I think it’s quite clear.”

One positive to take from the defeat was the performance of Christopher Nkunku, who has shown improvement after recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for a significant portion of his debut season at Stamford Bridge. Maresca praised Nkunku’s display, highlighting his versatility as an attacking midfielder and striker.

“For me, he played a very good game. We are trying to use him as an attacking midfielder and a striker, depending on the moment. Also, we are using him as a striker today because Marc (Guiu) was tired at the end. It’s normal but overall, the important thing for Christo, we are able to contact with him between the lines. Today we contact with Christo and Enzo (Fernandez) many, many times between the lines. This is the most important thing, to arrive there, and with time we will take chances and score more goals.”

Addressing a key issue for Chelsea, Maresca acknowledged the team’s high defensive line, which has resulted in conceding numerous goals during their United States tour. The Blues conceded twice against Wrexham and four goals in defeats to Celtic and Manchester City.

“It’s a habit. We are not working on defensive lines so high. It’s a habit from last year, or years ago; I don’t know. We are trying to drop the defensive line a little bit, usually about four or five meters, just to have some advantage. Last year, we already conceded many goals with this problem. Hopefully we can solve it very soon.”

Maresca emphasized that the defensive issue has been a focus since pre-season began, and he addressed it in his early meetings with the squad. He stressed that the problem extends beyond just the defensive line and involves all players.

“It’s a problem we are trying to solve from pre-season, since day one. One of my first meetings with the squad was about the amount of goals we conceded last year with the defensive line very high. It’s something we are trying to work on. Today, offensively, we are there – the patterns are there. We created chances. The problem is defensively; when I say defensively, I don’t just mean the defensive line, but in general, all the players.”