Who would be a football manager? Clearly a lot of people want to be, but at a top six club it is a real pressure cooker dealing with owners, players, the media (both mainstream and social) and fans. (I am assuming here that the manager’s role is focused on coaching as us often the case today, although recruitment by a director of football is clearly a potential source of tension.)
So what is going on at Chelsea? We are nearly half a week on from Enzo
Maresca’s sudden outburst following Chelsea’s game over Everton — and it is
still unclear exactly what caused it.
Any hope that a 3-1 win over Cardiff City to progress to the
Carabao Cup semi-finals would lighten Maresca’s mood were soon quashed post
match. Two goals from Alejandro Garnacho and one from Pedro Neto ended the
League One side’s resistance but did not put a stop to the drama of the last
few days.
After smiling during the post-match celebrations on the
pitch in front of an away support singing his name for the first time in
several months, the Italian looked ashen faced during his debrief with the
written media. He looked so glum, one journalist even asked if he was genuinely
happy about reaching the last four. Maresca ended the inquisition by revealing
that he had not spoken to any member of the sporting leadership team or owners
since complaining at the weekend that he had experienced the worst 48 hours of
his career at Stamford Bridge.
Conversations with Chelsea sources by the New York Times have
revealed that those at the club genuinely did not see it coming. They suggested
that nothing of note had happened over the previous two days to spark such an
outburst. Maresca has tried to insist
the matter is closed as far as he is concerned, but the speculation will inevitably
continue.
There is seemingly quite a split in the fanbase among those
who are pro or against the Italian being in charge. Naturally, there was a lot
more criticism on social media after the disappointing results and performances
prior to the Everton fixture, against Leeds United (3-1 loss), Bournemouth (0-0
draw) and Atalanta (2-1 defeat).
The mood at the club a few weeks ago was very upbeat, with
Chelsea doing well in the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup, and
it is not going to dramatically shift after just three matches, even if they
did not go as planned. Chelsea showed their backing for Maresca when he went
through a much worse run of form between December and late February last
season, picking up just nine Premier League points out of 30 and being knocked
out of the FA Cup by Brighton & Hove Albion.
Being the coach of Chelsea is a highly pressurised job, and
after Maresca’s achievements last season, expectations from the fans have gone
up. Chelsea qualified for the Champions League and won the Conference League
and Club World Cup in Maresca’s first campaign.
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