FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Chelsea - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - January 25, 2025 Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith /File Photo
(Reuters) - Several Chelsea players have been the subject of speculation in the January transfer window, which is impacting the club's form, manager Enzo Maresca said on Friday ahead of a Premier League meeting with West Ham United.
Chelsea were second in the standings and hot on the heels of leaders Liverpool in December after a run of five straight league wins, but have since fallen to sixth and won just one of their last seven matches.
In the same period, players like defender Axel Disasi and forwards Christopher Nkunku and Joao Felix have been linked with moves away from the club.
Asked if the speculation has had an adverse effect on the team, Maresca told reporters: "100%. 100% for me. But not only us, all the teams, because in the end (the players) are human beings.
"Even if they are say, 'no, I'm professional, I'm focused on this', if they are talking about you and different clubs then the focus is not 100%. This can be something (to explain their drop in form)."
On Monday, Chelsea host 14th-placed West Ham in what will be former manager Graham Potter's first return to Stamford Bridge since he was sacked in 2023.
Maresca said Potter had transformed West Ham since taking charge earlier this month, adding: "They are very aggressive.
"I have watched the four games with Graham in charge and they try to be very aggressive – even in the last game against Aston Villa.
"So it will be a tough game like always and in terms of our tactical approach, we have two days to prepare the game and we will see."
The Italian coach faces a difficult decision for the match, with fans calling for goalkeeper Robert Sanchez to be dropped after the Spaniard committed an error that led to a goal in their 3-1 defeat to Manchester City last week.
Maresca said he had not yet decided whether Sanchez or backup stopper Filip Jorgensen would start.
"We have two or three days for the decision. The good thing is that any decision I take, I feel good because every time Filip has played since we started, he has done well," he said.
"Filip or Robert, we will see but any decision will be okay... The first time I spoke with Filip in June or July, I was clear that the number one choice was Robert."
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Nashik, India; Editing by Toby Davis)
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