Enzo Maresca makes Unai Emery demand ahead of Aston Villa as £21m Chelsea star linked with exit

Chelsea welcome Aston Villa to Stamford Bridge on Saturday and Enzo Maresca has been praising the Villans ahead of the clash

Enzo Maresca has called on his Chelsea side to be more consistent if they are to challenge for top honours in the future.

The Blues face an in-form Aston Villa side on Saturday, with Unai Emery's team winning 11 of their last 12 Premier League games. The Villans are just one point behind second placed Manchester City, while Arsenal are just three points ahead, and Maresca believes the west Londoners now need to emulate Villa's form to take the next step.

"Yeah, for sure it's one of the next steps," the Italian said. "Again, to win 10 games in a row in the Premier League is very difficult.

"I think it's normal that they received praise from last year, three years ago this season, because they are doing fantastic."

Chelsea have only lost once in their last eight league games, although draws to Bournemouth and Newcastle in that period mean Maresca's side are currently fighting more for Champions League qualification instead of the Premier League title.

The former Leicester City boss knows how tough a test Villa will present at Stamford Bridge, with the 45-year-old praising Emery ahead of the clash.

"I think, as you said, he has done a fantastic job in all the clubs. For sure it can happen that in some clubs you have some problems, but the way he does with his team, it's very clear," Maresca said of the Spaniard.

"They are very intense, very aggressive. They know exactly what they want when they are on the ball. And again, Sevilla, PSG, Arsenal, Aston Villa, before, because I faced Emery when I was a player and he was Almeria's manager.

"So it's many, many years, more than 25 years ago. So Unai is doing a fantastic job everywhere and he deserves it because his work ethic is very, very, very big."

Maresca has, meanwhile, refused to rule out a January exit for goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen. The 23-year-old, who joined from Villarreal for around £21million in 2024, has only made five appearances this season, with three of those coming in the Carabao Cup.

Robert Sanchez is the undisputed No.1 in west London and it is understood Jorgensen is desperate for some more regular game time this season, with the Danish shot-stopper open to exploring his options in the January transfer window.

"In this moment, as I said before, I'm not thinking about January, but for sure we are happy with Filip," Maresca said. "But at the same time I said many times that they all want to play, and if they don't play, they are not happy. So we'll see what happens in January.