The stats behind 'fun to watch' Chelsea's resurgence

Seven Premier League games into Enzo Maresca's reign arsenic Chelsea brag and the Blues fans person plentifulness to beryllium excited about.

Before this weekend's matches started, lone Manchester City with 17 goals had scored much than Chelsea's full of 16.

At the aforesaid signifier past season, Chelsea, astatine the opening of Mauricio Pochettino's lone run successful charge, had 7 goals, including a three-game tally without registering.

In 2024-25, the Blues person been acold much entertaining. They person created 27 "big" chances, the joint-second highest successful the division, and had 41 shots connected target, the 5th highest.

Italian Maresca guided Leicester to the Championship rubric earlier replacing Pochettino aft the Argentine near by "mutual consent" astatine the extremity of past season.

Since coming in, Maresca started with a 2-0 location nonaccomplishment against reigning champions Manchester City, but has since guided them to victories including 6-2 astatine Wolves, 3-0 astatine West Ham and 4-2 against Brighton.

Cole Palmer is flying successful the goalscoring charts with six goals, portion Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke person 4 apiece.

Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin feels the club's attacking players person improved nether Maresca, with little reliance connected Palmer, a subordinate that scored 22 league goals past season.

Speaking connected The Football News Show, Nevin picked retired the greater productivity from Jackson and Madueke.

"Nicolas Jackson, the magnitude of chances helium missed [last season] successful large positions helium got into with his staggering pace, and past blew it, but he’s getting amended astatine that. He is moving into much intelligent areas," said Nevin.

"Noni Madueke has besides travel connected to the crippled arsenic well. He has that younker but arsenic a winger, you person to spell past radical and it's astonishing however galore radical bash that for a portion but past suffer that and marque elemental passes instead.

"But astatine Chelsea you person Madueke and Jadon Sancho and some privation to get past people.

"Chelsea aren’t totally, utterly leaning connected Cole Palmer now. Cole’s been superb again, subordinate of the period past month, subordinate of the play past year, but it's present not conscionable him."

While Maresca has enjoyed a bully commencement to his spell astatine Chelsea, determination is nary uncertainty Pochettino near the nine successful a beardown presumption with wide signs of improvement.

They reached the Carabao Cup final, mislaid to Manchester City successful the semi-finals of the FA Cup and won their past 5 matches to decorativeness sixth and summation a instrumentality to Europe, albeit successful the third-tier Europa Conference League.

That sixth-placed decorativeness came aft lone finishing 12th successful 2022-23, but it was inactive not capable to support Pochettino successful a job.

Former Aston Villa and West Ham midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger believes determination person been further signs of advancement from Chelsea this season, but inactive thinks they are immoderate mode from winning the title.

"They're amusive to ticker - and inactive determination are truthful galore options successful the squad, a batch of talent," helium told the Planet Premier League podcast.

"I deliberation that was the semipermanent extremity of the Chelsea owners; to bring successful a batch of endowment and yet [challenge]. They request clip to get going but past with this endowment and a bully manager is needed to get it each together.

"This play we person seen glimpses of it, a batch of radical are amazed to spot them doing this good already but I deliberation it's going to instrumentality adjacent longer to go existent rubric contenders."

Chelsea person won each 3 of their distant league matches this season, but we volition find retired however beardown they truly are erstwhile they look Liverpool astatine Anfield connected Sunday (16:30 BST).

After Liverpool, Maresca's broadside volition person Premier League games against Newcastle, Manchester United and Arsenal. Liverpool person a challenging tally of their own, with a travel to Arsenal adjacent successful the league followed by matches against Aston Villa and Brighton aft which they sojourn Southampton earlier hosting champions Manchester City.

"For Liverpool we volition find retired [on Sunday] astir their rubric credentials, due to the fact that these are the teams you privation to play against and find retired if you’re bully enough," added Nevin.

"Liverpool volition beryllium determination oregon thereabouts, decidedly successful the apical three. But for Chelsea it's somewhat different, it’s not checking rubric credentials, it’s apical 4 credentials.

"They’ve matured, they’ve got better, they are improving each the clip but it’s going to instrumentality a small spot longer, they are not Manchester City oregon Arsenal.

"If they get done these adjacent 4 fixtures successful the Premier League and are inactive successful the apical four, I deliberation they volition enactment determination for the remainder of the season."