Chelsea win with authority, but Maresca sounds the alarm

While Stamford Bridge's floodlights beamed brightly upon Chelsea's 2-0 win over Servette, Enzo Maresca's face on the bench told a different story. Yes, the scoreboard was comfortable, but for an Italian coach like him, it is details that count more than numbers. Anybody who thinks Maresca was laid-back after the final whistle got it wrong.

From the very beginning, Chelsea showed their visiting card: high pressure, quick passing, and youthful energy. The second half's early goal from Nkunku was soon followed by another from substitute Madueke, and with that, all doubts regarding victory were dispelled. Two goals in the return match, a firm step into the group stage of the UEFA Conference League. However, as Maresca rightly noted, the devil lives in the details.

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In his post-game assessment, the coach was sure to note where Chelsea shone and stumbled. "It was important to win the game and not concede," he said first, but then he went on to say that there were moments when his team "played with fire", most of all in the final minutes. Yet, for Maresca, the victory was tainted — a two-goal advantage that really ought to have been secure but was instead muddled by a side that seemed to think it was better off playing the ball around its own half rather than neutering the game in attack. It gave Servette encouragement.

Maresca is insistent that his overriding priority is consistency. The youth of this team is a double-edged sword. On one hand, freshness, intensity, and a tireless willingness to carry out the coach's commands. On the other, it brings inexperience and a tendency to make mistakes that more mature teams would avoid. "We're in a learning phase," said Maresca, underlining the need for his young team to understand the importance of managing the game with intelligence, not just energy.

And this inexperience was evident when Servette began to threaten. Maresca, with his hawk eye, knows matches are won as much in the head as in the legs. Chelsea may have the talents of Renato Veiga, Axel Disasi, and Pedro Neto, but without maturity to make the right decisions under pressure, those talents can become a liability. In the closing minutes, Chelsea became convinced that Servette would finally find a breakthrough and really showed that they still have a long way to go.

Emblematic, the words of Maresca about the scorer of the second goal, Madueke: "The only problem with Noni is that he has to understand that he has to be steady during the week, every training session". It means a fair request, setting the standard: this isn't an option in high-level football, shining one day and then fading the next. Chelsea are still building a team and this construction is from mindset.

Another concern that Maresca seemed to have in the game was Cole Palmer, who departed from the pitch feeling unwell. Keeping a fresh bench is very necessary at this time of the calendar year with many games left. He knows players getting injured is part of the game, but minimizing risks and keeping them fit is also part of it.

Ultimately, this win over Servette was a mix of pride and warning. Yes, Chelsea finally emerged victorious in the match, but the result camouflages many ghosts which Maresca needs to exorcise before they can dream of higher flights. The potential he has at his hands is matched by its need for polishing into a glittering diamond.

Thus, for them, the road to glory in the UEFA Conference League is open, but it takes more than talent to travel such a road. This victory was one step, but Maresca knows that to reach the final destination, every step needs to be firm, sure, and full of purpose. Maresca's Chelsea is still a work in progress, but the coach is determined to make it his masterpiece. If young players understand this, then the Blues can look forward to a bright future; otherwise, they are sure to end up as just another flash in the pan.