(Video): Maresca points to what his team did better this season than Man City, Liverpool and Arsenal | OneFootball

Chelsea got a big win over Nottingham Forest yesterday afternoon which put them into the Champions League for next season, and as we have already noted, Enzo Maresca took the chance to hit back at his critics after a tough season.

He continued the same thread in his interview with the club’s TV channel – a little bit sour, but understandably so after a season of being doubted. He made a big point of noting that the best teams in the league had struggled to win at Forest this year, under less pressured circumstances than his team were under today.

“[Manchester] City lost here, Liverpool drew, Arsenal drew,” Maresca said, clearly having made a point of revising his rivals’ efforts at the City Ground.

“So to come here and win the game was not easy. But we prepared the game thinking about us.”

He also spoke about the way his team had defended and kept a crucial clean sheet. He didn’t point out the defenders, instead calling it a team effort:

“When you defend well, it’s the way you press from the striker back. I think Pedro was good, Cole was good, Noni and Jadon were top. So a very good performance from all of them.”

As he did in the written presser, he also railed against the critics who had said his team were not mature or experienced enough to succeed.

You can see Maresca speaking in the clip embedded here:

Maresca’s men play out their game plan

Maresca called his team “aggressive on the ball and off the ball” in this interview, which we have to disagree with. They were passive on the ball and off the ball, particularly in the first half. But that was quite clearly the plan, and they executed it. Fair play to them. They did what they needed to do, and now they get the reward.