Joe Cole compared Chelsea youngster Marc Guiu to Barcelona and Liverpool legend Luis Suarez after he starred in the Europa Conference League win over Astana.
Chelsea’s seamless run in the competition continued in sub-freezing temperatures in Kazakhstan on Thursday night as Enzo Maresca’s side ran out comfortable 3-1 winners.
Maresca fielded a much-changed Chelsea team but that was not an issue as the Premier League giants found themselves 2-0 up inside 20 minutes.
Guiu scored Chelsea’s opener with his third goal for the club since joining in a £5m move from Barcelona last summer.
Cole was impressed by Guiu’s performance and likened the 18-year-old to Suarez, one of the greatest strikers to grace the Premier League and La Liga.
Suarez only spent three full seasons at Liverpool but is still regarded as one of their best-ever forwards, having scored 82 goals in 133 appearances.
The Uruguayan hero then moved to Barcelona where he scored an impressive 198 goals in 283 games, winning four La Liga titles and the Champions League during a superb stint at the Nou Camp.
‘He must have watched Luis Suarez as a young man at Barcelona,’ Cole said of Guiu on TNT Sports.
‘He has great movement. He was a thorn in the side throughout the game. I love him.
‘He will give you energy and aggression. This kid is 18 and how big and strong he will be when he gets older. Chelsea have a real gem there.’
The victory means Chelsea remain top of the Europa Conference League with a maximum 15 points from five games.
Speaking more generally about Chelsea’s impressive form, Cole added: ‘I’m happy to go on record to say that there will be a title challenge coming from Chelsea if everything goes well in the next couple of months.
‘There aren’t many weaknesses in this team now and it’s credit to Enzo Maresca. Everything is rosy at the moment for them.’
Chelsea, currently sitting second in the Premier League, are the clear favourites to win the Europa Conference League.
Speaking after his Chelsea team proved too strong for Astana, Maresca said: ‘It was a solid performance. We knew it was quite cold and we tried to adapt quickly.
‘The players did fantastically with the weather conditions, the long journey yesterday, and the pitch was not ideal for us. Overall I’m very happy for the players.
‘I’m also happy for the young players who helped us win the game. I was impressed by all of them. The ones who started, Tyrique [George], Sam [Rak-Sakyi] and Josh [Acheampong] all did very good.
‘So I’m very happy for them and the ones that came on in the second half – I’m pleased.’
On Guiu, who also played a key role in Chelsea’s second, Maresca added: ‘Marc is doing well. Since we started he has been working hard.
‘We have Nicolas Jackson and Christo Nkunku who are doing well, but when he had the chance today, Marc played in the right way.’
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