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Enzo Maresca celebrates on the pitch after his Chelsea side's win over Liverpool(Image: HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)

Enzo Maresca believes Liverpool’s lack of injuries were a key factor to them romping to the Premier League title after his Chelsea side dealt a rare setback to the new champions.

The Reds lost only their third league game of the season when a much-changed team fell to a 3-1 reverse at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon.

It breathed fresh life into Chelsea’s hopes of claiming a top-five finish and Champions League qualification.

And while Maresca praised the performance from a much-changed Liverpool team, he regards their player availability as chief reason they stand 19 points ahead of the Londoners.

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“I really think that Liverpool deserve to win the Premier League,” said the Chelsea boss.

We planned the game for high pressing but sometimes the other team is so good you have to defend it and we had to defend it, the players they did that very good.

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“Today was the best environment with the fans.”

Maresca hailed the performance of midfielder Romeo Lavia, who was signed by Chelsea two years ago having been pursued for much of that summer by Liverpool.

“You can see that we are a better team with Romeo,” he said.

Featuring match reports, player spotlights, behind-the-scenes stories and iconic moments from a campaign to remember.

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Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring his team's fourth goal during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC at Anfield on April 27, 2025 (Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

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Cole Palmer sealed Chelsea’s win with an injury-time penalty to end a 12-game league goal drought.
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