Enzo Maresca hit again at Chelsea’s critics after the Blues secured Champions League soccer for the primary time since 2022 with a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Levi Colwill’s close-range end 5 minutes after half-time was the distinction on the Metropolis Floor, with Chelsea ending the marketing campaign in fourth place.
Certainly, their win over Forest noticed the Blues win and hold a clear sheet in a Premier League away sport for the primary time since September, after they beat West Ham 3-0.
A lot was made about Chelsea’s younger squad all through their maiden season beneath Maresca, with the crew tipped to problem on the prime following a nice begin.
Certainly, the typical age of Chelsea’s beginning XI within the top-flight this season was 24 years and 36 days – the youngest ever by a crew in a single marketing campaign within the competitors.
Inconsistency in December and January, which noticed the Blues go 4 league video games with no win, noticed many imagine they might wrestle to complete within the prime 5.
Nevertheless, six wins of their closing 9 matches of the season noticed Chelsea seal a return to Europe’s elite competitors, with Maresca sending a message to his crew’s doubters.
“I didn’t have any doubt in regards to the gamers,” Maresca stated in his post-match press convention. “The doubt was from exterior.
“All those which have the solutions or those which have the reality, they had been saying that we’re too younger, we’re not ok, that we had been ready for Aston Villa to drop factors for us to attain the Champions League.
“They had been saying that we weren’t in a position to win on this pitch [at Forest] as a result of we’re too younger, as a result of we’re not skilled.
“Sadly for them, they’ve all been incorrect. All those which have the reality and have the reply to the whole lot.
“So in English, how do you say? F-off to all of them, as a result of the gamers deserve that. The trouble they’ve been placing in is unbelievable.”
See you quickly, @ChampionsLeague. pic.twitter.com/pavTx7T9MO
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) Might 25, 2025
It additionally marked the primary time that Chelsea would seem within the Champions League beneath the present possession, led by Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.
“Twelfth two seasons in the past, sixth final season, fourth this season, with most likely the youngest squad within the historical past of the Premier League,” Maresca added.
“[Manchester] Metropolis misplaced right here, Arsenal drew right here, Liverpool drew right here. Chelsea received. It’s not straightforward. The gamers confirmed how good they’re.
“Sadly, we’re in a enterprise the place the folks – you – decide us due to the outcomes.
“At the moment, if we weren’t in a position to win the sport most likely all of you’d decide this season as a catastrophe.”
Chelsea will now flip their consideration to Wednesday’s Europa Convention League closing, the place they face Actual Betis in Wroclaw.
