Enzo Maresca says Cole Palmer’s form is not helped by Chelsea’s reliance on him

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca said his side’s over-reliance on Cole Palmer could be affecting the England forward’s form after his goalless streak extended to six games in Saturday’s defeat to Aston Villa.

The 22-year-old remains the club’s leading scorer this season with 14 but he has not netted since the draw against Bournemouth on January 14 while his last assist came 13 matches ago.

Chelsea have dropped from second in the Premier League to seventh during a run of two wins from 10 games and face being squeezed out of the race to qualify for the Champions League if results do not improve.

Palmer was visibly frustrated with his team-mates at Villa Park, in particular at one point with Christopher Nkunku, and his increasingly despondent body language during the team’s poor run has been a cause for concern.

The former Manchester City player won admiration when things were going well for his unencumbered, laid back style on the pitch and laconic approach to the media but it is a disposition that has worn less well on the team’s barren streak.

“I’m not concerned,” said Maresca. “I’m always concerned about general performances, but I’m not concerned about Cole because he is a human being. During the season he can have some moments where he is struggling a little bit more.

“The problem with Cole is probably that we rely on him for everything. I said since we started that we need to rely on the team. For sure we need big players, top players like Cole but we are not worried about him at all.”

Chelsea face Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday knowing a win could move them back into the top four for 24 hours at least.

A home game against the league’s bottom side could be just the stage for the victory that Maresca has