Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca lavished praise on captain Reece James following a stirring second-half fightback that saw the Blues snatch a 2-2 draw away to Newcastle United on Saturday, 20th December 2025.
James sparks dramatic turnaround
Facing a daunting two-goal deficit after a poor first-half display, Chelsea's revival was ignited by their skipper. Reece James fired in a superb free-kick to begin the comeback before Joao Pedro netted an excellent individual effort to level the score.
James's influence extended beyond the scoresheet, with the England international making a game-saving tackle in the 76th minute to preserve the hard-earned point. Maresca was effusive in his post-match assessment of the defender's display.
Maresca's verdict on a 'top performance'
"He was brilliant, once again, a top performance," Maresca stated. "He played for one hour as a midfielder and then the last half an hour as a full-back in his position. Again, he's doing a fantastic job, not only for the goal, in general, and we are happy for him."
The Chelsea boss also offered his view on the contentious nature of the result, countering Newcastle manager Eddie Howe's claim that the Magpies deserved to win.
"I think after the first half, they deserved to win the game for sure," Maresca conceded. "From my point of view, after the second half, we deserved to win the game. After the second goal we scored, we had three or four clear chances to score one more. Overall, I think the draw is correct."
Character shown in difficult atmosphere
Despite the disappointment of the opening 45 minutes, Maresca emphasised the significant positive of his team's resilience at a hostile St James' Park.
"That has been my message at the end of the game," he added. "For sure, in the first half there are things we can do better. But the way they showed in the second half, character, togetherness, they have to feel proud. Because you know better than me, you are from here, 2-0 down against Newcastle away in this stadium, this noise, this environment is not easy. Not many teams can do that and they have done."
The result leaves Chelsea with a valuable point from a challenging fixture, underpinned by a captain's performance that drew the highest acclaim from their manager.
