The recent run that Chelse has been on, building from win after another, has gotten the entire fan zone buzzing with excitement.
The excitement was long lost after Thomas Tuchel’s exit, and finally, fans feel like the club is back in the top draw.
This win spree has also significantly impacted the ticket marketplace, such as Seatsnet, with unprecedented demand for tickets.
But Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca doesn’t want any involvement in the festivities and plays down any movement, emphasizing that all the fans with Chelsea tickets should take game by game.
Chelsea cannot with the Prem, Yet.
Enzo Maresca has insisted that Chelsea is not ready to compete for the Premier League title but believes that his strong start to the season is building “energy, trust, and confidence” among his players.
Thursday’s 4-2 win over Gent in their opening match of the Conference League was Chelsea’s fifth in succession in all competitions, with Maresca’s side scoring 17 goals during that run.
They are behind the leaders, Liverpool, and one behind the champions, Manchester City – who inflicted Chelsea’s only defeat of the season so far on the opening weekend – and last season’s runners-up, Arsenal. But Maresca, who, like Mikel Arteta, previously worked as an assistant to Pep Guardiola at City, was adamant that his team would need time to build following his arrival from Leicester in the summer.
“I really don’t think we can compete with City or Arsenal. I don’t think that because we are not ready,” he said. “The reason is that City has worked with the same manager for nine years and Arsenal for five years. If you want to compete for big things, you need that time.
“After Arsenal beat PSG [in the Champions League on Tuesday], they asked Luis Enrique, and he said the same thing, that ‘Arsenal have had the same manager for five years and us [PSG] a year and a half.’ Imagine us, three months … so it’s a huge difference. So I am really convinced we cannot compete with those clubs. The target is to improve and slowly get closer to those clubs, but at the moment, we are not ready for that.”
Despite the downplaying of the odds, fans aren’t letting down their hopes. Reputed marketplaces such as Seatsnet have reported ten times more requests for Chelsea tickets this season than any other club. Seatsnet also reports that this wasn’t the case at the start of the season.
But Maresca’s tactful transfer window has brought in a combination of talent and experience that will help the club win in the brand new season.
Asked how long it may take to reach City and Arsenal’s level, Maresca added: “There is no time frame because you can continue to improve and add solutions to things always. But in the end, the more time you are together, the better things are because you can get to know each other. They can improve. It is about this.”
Maresca dismissed suggestions that his calm approach was different from that of three of Chelsea’s previous Italian managers, Carlo Ancelotti, Maurizio Sarri, and Antonio Conte, but he said his squad’s good start to the campaign has bred confidence.
Big Plans for Chelsea in January
Chelsea plans to offload left-back Ben Chilwell at the earliest possible opportunity, and an unbeaten European giant reportedly shows ‘strong interest’ in making a move.
Chilwell does not feature in Enzo Maresca’s plans. Marc Cucurella is the first choice, backed up by the summer signing of Renato Veiga.
According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea plans to sell Chilwell in the January window.
Romano wrote on X: “The plan remains to part ways in January with Chilwell expected to be one of the players set to leave Chelsea.”
The 27-year-old cost roughly £50m when bought from Leicester City in 2020. The Blues will struggle to recoup a fee close to that sum, though they reportedly have a suitor ready to splash the cash.
Reports claim Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid are showing ‘strong interest’ in Chilwell and are targeting a mid-season transfer.
All the fans with Chelsea tickets know that Chilwell was one of those players who had the potential to become legendary but missed the train by just a fine margin.
Chilwell’s exit plan will likely happen in January with the new signings.
Atletico has started the new campaign in fine fashion. Following Angel Correa’s last-gasp equalizer against Real Madrid last time out, they’re one of just two unbeaten sides in La Liga after eight games (four wins, four draws). The other is Real Madrid (five wins, three draws).
Chelsea sought to offload Chilwell over the summer, with the defender part of the so-called ‘bomb squad’ of stars Maresca had no intention of using.
Chilwell has featured once this season on the back of failing to secure a transfer away. His only outing came in the EFL Cup thrashing of League Two side Barrow.
If Chilwell were to join Atletico Madrid, he’d link up with former Blues teammate Conor Gallagher.
The all-action midfielder signed to the tune of £34m and has started Atletico’s last five matches in La Liga, scoring two goals during that span.
Atletico has become another club that has attracted more eyeballs this season, with the match between Real Madrid and Atletico drawing a record for a Spanish game on the ticketing platform Seatsnet.
Diego Simone has a ballistic squad in his hands this time.
Chilwell may have options to remain in England, with the Sun detailing Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town’s interest in mid-September.
Both Premier League sides are said to be ‘tracking’ Chilwell, though given his lack of game time, there hasn’t been much to observe of late.
Chelsea Chase, Brazilian Wonderkid
In other news, Chelsea are still chasing Brazilian wonderkid Joao Pedro Chermont despite seeing a bid rejected.
The 18-year-old Santos sensation is a right-back by trade, and his contract contains a hefty €70m (£58.8m / $77.2m) release clause.
Elsewhere, TEAMtalk can confirm that Chelsea also hopes to bring Jhon Dhuran out of Aston Villa. All the fans with Chelsea tickets have been aggressively campaigning for Dhuran since his magnificent display against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
The Blues tried and failed to sign the Colombian hotshot last summer, though Villa now demands upwards of £80m for his spectacular form this term.
Finally, we can exclusively reveal that the Blues are considering a move for former Manchester City striker Liam Delap.
The 21-year-old completed a £20m move to Ipswich Town in July and has scored three goals in six Premier League matches for Kieran McKenna’s side.
A move to Atletico Madrid would see Chilwell reunite with England teammate Conor Gallagher, who left Chelsea and joined Diego Simeone’s side in a £34million deal in the summer transfer window.
Kieran Trippier is the only other Englishman to have played for Atletico, and he helped the club win the La Liga title in the 2020/21 season.
Overall, 23 English footballers have played for a club in La Liga, and Chilwell could be about to follow in the footsteps of some iconic figures.
Laurie Cunningham, Gary Lineker, Steve McManaman, David Beckham, and Jude Bellingham have all won trophies in Spain.
But not every Englishman has been a success in La Liga, as Jonathan Woodgate, Jermaine Pennant, Stan Collymore, and Peter Barnes all endured difficult stints in Spain.
Chelsea tickets for the UEFA Confederations Cup are available on Seatsnet now.
