Enzo Maresca said he had fallen head over heels ‘in love’ with Josh Acheampong following Chelsea’s 3-0 victory over Legia Warszawa and predicted the teenager would go on to be a big part of the club’s future.
Chelsea took a giant step towards the Europa Conference League semi-finals with a dominant win in Warsaw and it proved a memorable night for the Blues’ bright young talent.
Tyrique George reacted the quickest on the rebound to put the visitors in front with his first goal in senior football shortly after half-time and Noni Madueke increased the lead with a 17-minute brace off the bench.
Madueke’s second came just moments after Christopher Nkunku was denied from the penalty spot, with Kacper Tobiasz getting down low to stop the Frenchman to his right.
Maresca’s men, the favourites to lift this year’s trophy, resume their quarter-final tie with Legia Warszawa at Stamford Bridge in a weeks’ time.
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Facing the media shortly after the win, Maresca praised his players on a ‘professional’ display, though admitted there was room for improvement, especially in their lacklustre first-half showing.
‘We planned the game to try to have our best players for this game and to give, also, a chance to rest players to recover energy,’ the Chelsea head coach told reporters.
‘In the end, overall, I think it has been a professional performance. Good result. Probably, in the second half, we were much better compared to the first half for different reasons.
‘I said many times that we need to learn how to play different kinds of games.
‘When you face Tottenham, they are high-pressing, there are more spaces, but when they sit back, you have to be more quick on the ball. You have to try to have a shot from outside the box because they are all inside the box so if you don’t shoot it’s difficult.
‘The first goal from Reece showed… rebound, Ty [George] was there.’
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Asked whether Chelsea perhaps struggled with a lack of tempo in the first half, the Italian replied: ‘It’s not easy.
‘I watched Aston Villa versus PSG and from the television, it’s as if it was a lack of tempo but it is what it is and you have to find solutions in the game and you have to learn.
‘I think we have to learn to play that kind of game against teams that sit back. How can you learn? For sure, you can be quicker on the ball. For sure, we have to take more risks.
‘When you arrive at the edge of the box, you have to try to shoot, like with our first goal.’
While George, 19, will have been delighted to get on the scoresheet, Maresca reserved special praise for another of Chelsea’s young stars, Acheampong, 18, who produced an assured performance from right-back in his ninth first-team appearance.
‘I’m happy, first of all, for the Chelsea academy because it’s one of our boys from the academy so I’m very happy for him [George],’ Maresca added.
‘He was quite good in the first half, taking responsibility. Second half, in the middle, he was probably a bit better.
‘But the one that I fell in love with tonight was Josh Acheampong because, for me, potentially, he can be a fantastic player, a top player, for this club, for the football in general.
‘A good player shows you that he can play in different positions and he can do good. He was full-back: good. Midfielder: good. Central defender: good.
‘So it’s not about, “Yeah, I play in that position and only in that position”. If you are a good player, you can play in different positions.
‘Tonight, I fall in love with Josh because, to be honest, since we start, I’m in love with him. But tonight, he showed that he can be a very good player for this club.’
Maresca has been especially impressed by Acheampong’s willingness and ability to play in a number of positions for Chelsea.
‘He can be good in different positions,’ the Chelsea boss explained.
‘The best thing from Josh, also, is that he is open, he wants to learn: “Okay, full-back? Yeah, no problem! What do I have to do?”Perfect. Midfielder? What do I have to do?”
‘And this is a player that is a good player. They want to play in all positions, they want to learn and Josh has been doing that from the start.’
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