Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has called on supporters to “trust the process” after a protest against the club’s owners preceded their 4-0 victory over Southampton. Around 200 fans gathered outside Stamford Bridge with banners and smoke flares before kick-off to voice opposition to the running of the club under the BlueCo consortium, fronted by Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.
Speaking after the match, Maresca said: “The only thing I can say is that in this moment the fans have to trust. We’re in the right process and the right direction. Since we started we’ve been top four most games of the season.” He added: “The fans have to trust the players. They are doing a huge effort every day to bring this club to the Champions League.”
The win, which moved Chelsea back into the top four, was secured by first-half goals from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Levi Colwill, with Marc Cucurella adding a fourth late on. However, Cole Palmer’s scoreless run extended to seven matches in all competitions, despite several chances. Maresca dismissed concerns, saying: “Cole Palmer is a human being… At this moment Cole is struggling to score but he’s happy and he knows it’s something normal.”
Chelsea’s third win in 11 league games lifted them above Manchester City into fourth place, though they could be overtaken if City beat Tottenham. Maresca noted: “Probably we are in our worst moment in terms of results but we are fourth and one point from third. That means a lot and shows how good we have been in the first part of the season.”
Southampton manager Ivan Juric, whose side remain 13 points from safety with 11 games left, reflected on a bright start that faded. “We did a really good first 20, 25 minutes… then we conceded a set-piece goal,” he said.
