Alejandro Garnacho: Chelsea forward outlines key ‘problems’ behind inconsistent campaign – ‘We can fight for everything’

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Alejandro Garnacho has called on Chelsea to be more consistent in order to be able to compete for major honours at the end of the season. After beating Barcelona and drawing with Arsenal, Chelsea slipped up, with defeat at Leeds and a draw with Bournemouth. As Enzo Maresca's side prepare to face Atalanta in the UEFA Champions League, Garnacho urged his team to show they can win the competition.

'I know the player I can be' - Garnacho has 'a lot to improve and show to people'

Video credit: TNT Sports

Alejandro Garnacho feels Chelsea have to be more consistent if they are to challenge for major trophies this season.

The Blues stunned Barcelona with a 3-0 thrashing at Stamford Bridge last time out in the UEFA Champions League and backed that up with a gutsy performance when down to 10 men in a 1-1 draw with Premier League leaders Arsenal.

But their next two results, a 3-1 loss to Leeds and a 0-0 draw with Bournemouth, have highlighted familiar December issues for Chelsea of the last two seasons, with their inconsistencies are once again laid bare.

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Enzo Maresca’s side sit fifth in the Premier League and seventh in the Champions League, showcasing a solid start to the season, but as the festive fixtures come thick and fast, Garnacho believes the players need to maintain focus in every match they play - beginning with Tuesday's clash against Atalanta - live on TNT Sports and discovery+.

"I think it [inconsistency] is one of the problems," Garnacho told TNT Sports. "We saw two weeks ago we played Barcelona and Arsenal and we showed the people that we can fight for everything.

"Then we lost games against the small teams, so we have to be more consistent to be the team that can win this competition for example.

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"I don’t know, [why there is inconsistency] we need to be more consistent, but we just train every day, not just focus on the big games.

"Think about the small games, for example, we don’t have to be focused at the same level, so maybe it is just this, because the quality of the players and of the team is there."

Garnacho made the move from Manchester United to Chelsea in the summer and says he has settled in well, evident from his bright start down the left-hand side for Maresca's side.

He is pleased with his first few months in London, but believes there is much more to come.

"[I feel] very good, the first month for example, is always hard, when you move from one place to another," Garnacho said.

"It is the same country but it is a different team and everything, you know - it is a bit hard but very happy with the teammates, a lot of people speak Spanish there also, this helps a lot.

"Of course, I am just 21, I think I have a lot to improve and to show to the people and I know the player I am and the player I can be in the future, so it is just hard work every day and then it will come."

Premier League 'absolutely' at its strongest

Maresca, meanwhile, feels Chelsea's inconsistencies so far this season are in part due to the sheer strength of the Premier League.

The Italian coach said the English top-flight is "absolutely" the strongest it has been.

"You can see the table, we are all there," Maresca said. "We are four or five points from second, five points from the rest and you can see teams like Palace, Sunderland, Brighton, Everton, that they improve a lot compared to last season."

Moises Caicedo is available for Chelsea and will be feeling fresh, having missed both the Leeds and Bournemouth matches due to the red card he received against Arsenal.

His return is a major boost to Maresca, but Cole Palmer, who marked his return from injury at Elland Road, has not travelled to Italy, as his manager attempts to ease him back in after an injury-ravaged start to the season, with the latter stages of an incredibly competitive Premier League season already in the back of his mind.

Maresca said: "Cole is not with us, he played the other day for one hour after more than two months, so the idea was to manage him a little bit, to protect him a little bit, so he is not with us."

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Maresca won his first trophy as Chelsea head coach in the UEFA Conference League last season, using a heavily-rotated squad, and spoke about the differences playing in that competition to now competing in the Champions League.

"The two competitions are completely different," he said.

"Champions League is demanding, also Champions League you play Tuesday and Wednesday, that is different from Thursday but again we just try to do our best."

Atalanta are one of five teams, including Chelsea, on 10 points after five matches in the Champions League.

In Serie A though, they have struggled, winning only three of their opening 14 matches and sitting in 12th - having sacked Ivan Juric just months after his appointment as manager.

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Nonetheless, Maresca is not underestimating his side’s "intense" opponents on Tuesday night.

"Atalanta had the same manager for many, many years that left last summer," Maresca said.

"The manager that is now in charge tried to do something similar to the one that was there for many years.

"They are an intense team, aggressive and I have no doubt that it is going to be a tough game.

"They beat Marseille away, in the Champions League, they are doing very well, as you say, the same points as us and hopefully we can win the game."

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