2 hours ago
2
Chelsea winger Alejandro Garnacho has started slowly but is beginning to show the kind of form that used to get Manchester United fans excited.
The Argentine, 21, got two assists during the 3-0 win over Wolves on Saturday, setting up the opening goal for Malo Gusto and the third for Pedro Neto, with Joao Pedro scoring the other after good work from livewire substitute Estevao Willian.
This was the first time Garnacho has had two Premier League assists in the same game, with the feat coming in his 99th appearance in the competition.
Yet it has taken time for Garnacho to play this well for Chelsea, having left under a cloud at Old Trafford.
Garnacho was exiled into the so-called 'bomb squad' by United manager Ruben Amorim and negotiations with Chelsea took a long time before his £40m move was completed in the final days of the summer transfer window.
That absence from competitive action left Garnacho looking short of fitness when arriving at Stamford Bridge, with no goals or assists in his first six matches.
However, Garnacho is now delivering, with two goals and two assists in his latest four matches.
When asked about Garnacho after the match, Maresca said: "He has had an open mind since we started. Last season he struggled a bit then got better and better. Garnacho has been very good on the left side."
The advice to Garnacho that has drawn prime form from the youngster has been a simple one.
His Chelsea prospects depend on him adhering to it.
"Work hard - this has been the main message when he joined us," Maresca said. "In terms of quality on the ball we know he is good; to play with us he has to work hard.
"On the ball he's doing well, but also off the ball he's working hard.
"He arrived from a club where he was not training 100% so his physical condition was not good. Slowly now he is better.
"He knows that to play with us he needs to be good on the ball and off the ball otherwise he's not going to play."
Garnacho was ridiculed by supporters of League One side Lincoln City on his first start for Chelsea, lasting just 59 minutes during a poor display in the Carabao Cup.
The winger has been eased in at Stamford Bridge, without completing a match until playing the full 90 minutes in the win against Wolves.
It was an impressive performance, featuring fantastic link-up play with his compatriot Enzo Fernandez.
Garnacho won a free-kick with his first action of the game and Fernandez's resulting shot was saved.
Midfielder Fernandez, captaining the team in the absence of regular skipper Reece James, later clipped a pass into Garnacho, whose shot was saved from close range and was the best attempt during the first half.
In the second half, Garnacho's in-swinging cross was headed in by unlikely scorer Malo Gusto to break the deadlock and ease pressure on a team who had been booed off at half-time.
Garnacho sprinted into space to set up Pedro Neto's goal that sealed victory.
The assists came after Garnacho spared Chelsea's blushes with an equaliser against Azerbaijani side Qarabag in the Champions League on Wednesday, after he came on as a half-time substitute when his team were trailing.
Garnacho also performed strongly in the 1-0 win at Tottenham a week ago, having scored his first goal in a defeat at home to Sunderland two weeks ago.
Maresca's best attack for the biggest matches now tends to feature Garnacho ahead of rival left-winger Jamie Gittens.
Chelsea ended Saturday sitting second in the Premier League table.
The Blues have played one game more than Manchester City, Liverpool and Bournemouth, who all play on Sunday, but a win before the international break leaves a positive feeling around the club.
Chelsea are also the division's top scorers with 21 goals from 11 games, but that would have been a difficult statistic to believe during a first half played at a lethargic pace.
"I was very worried before this game," said Maresca. "These are the worst games, they're tricky. Everyone is thinking it's going to be easy.
"I can understand in the first half people were not happy because we didn't score. Then when Estevao came on the energy raised because people love that kind of player."
The 18-year-old Brazilian has largely been limited to substitute appearances in the Premier League as he acclimatises to English football.
Maresca said this week that the youngster, who moved from his homeland in the summer, had complained about the cold weather in London, and the manager warned him to expect it to get worse before it gets better on that front.
"You can see his talent," said Maresca of Estevao. "We are trying to help him to adapt and give him the right minutes.
"He arrived from Brazil, he needs time to adapt, but he's going to start games for us in the future."
Chelsea next face a trip to Turf Moor after the international break to face Burnley on 22 November.
They remain in the EFL Cup, where they have had a seemingly favourable draw away to League One side Cardiff City in the quarter-final, and they have a glamour game at home to Barcelona in the Champions League coming up three days after the Burnley test.
Star attacker Cole Palmer is due back from injury in December, which could provide a further boost as Chelsea aim to qualify for the Champions League through at least a top-four or top-five finish this season.
Maresca's "word hard" message to Garnacho is reflected in his wider view of how Chelsea can reach their targets.
He said: "Inside, we are convinced that as a club, as a team, we are going in the right direction and we are doing good things. At the same time we can do many things better."
