Enzo Maresca - Chelsea manager - Sack watch

Championship manager Maresca has now outperformed Poch… Where is that very special Poch adulator ?


Gotta win the European Micky mouse cup now (not gonna be easy vs Antony)… before getting embarrassed in the FIFA CWC.
 
Championship manager Maresca has now outperformed Poch… Where is that very special Poch adulator ?


Gotta win the European Micky mouse cup now (not gonna be easy vs Antony)… before getting embarrassed in the FIFA CWC.


I just really don't understand how anyone can look at how we played this year vs last year and argue in good faith that Maresca was a downgrade on Poch.
 
I wouldnt be suprised if he is gone by Christmas, after the fall off in the 2nd half of last season if he doesnt get the new season off to a strong start the Chelsea fans will probably start to turn on him.
 
Shite football that won’t get results consistently, because it doesn’t create enough chances and stifles their attacking players.

It will be a wasted season for them with him in charge.
 
Shite football that won’t get results consistently, because it doesn’t create enough chances and stifles their attacking players.

It will be a wasted season for them with him in charge.

I swear we created the second most big chances in the league last season, i dont think people actually watch us play.
 
I swear we created the second most big chances in the league last season, i dont think people actually watch us play.

It’s just factual that, statistically, the Xg and quality of the chances created has decreased the more his style of play was implemented, just as it did at Leicester.

Chelsea aren’t good to watch and recycle possession too much. Watching the games, there are visible patterns, looking at the stats, there are visible patterns.

He is too lost in his possession ideology whe Chelsea have one of the quickest, youngest and most athletic teams in the division.

It’s a waste of time and energy.
 
It’s just factual that, statistically, the Xg and quality of the chances created has decreased the more his style of play was implemented, just as it did at Leicester.

Chelsea aren’t good to watch and recycle possession too much. Watching the games, there are visible patterns, looking at the stats, there are visible patterns.

He is too lost in his possession ideology whe Chelsea have won of the quickest, youngest and most athletic teams in the division.

It’s a waste of time and energy.

We created really good chances in the first half in todays match. We had only one CF all of last season and his form dropped off, same as Palmers.
Then Mudryk got banned so we lost another option, not a surprise the quality of chances decreased.
 
We created really good chances in the first half in todays match. We had only one CF all of last season and his form dropped off, same as Palmers.
Then Mudryk got banned so we lost another option, not a surprise the quality of chances decreased.

The Xg last season fell off the more the team kept possession. It’s just sad that a young team, who were playing so well before this “style” was embedded, have been shackled, imo.

I think it’s easier to believe that the coaching has purposely increased possession and safer passes and sucked the creativity out of the team, rather than believing that Mudryk would have made much difference.
 
The Xg last season fell off the more the team kept possession. It’s just sad that a young team, who were playing so well before this “style” was embedded, have been shackled, imo.

I think it’s easier to believe that the coaching has purposely increased possession and safer passes and sucked the creativity out of the team, rather than believing that Mudryk would have made much difference.
Forget Mudryk. The team lost balance when there were injuries to Fofana, Lavia, James, Gusto, Jackson. The team will be better equipped to handle key injuries this coming season. Also, the team kept less possession as the season wore on, not more. In fact, the most successful phase of the 2nd half of the season (last 8 games) saw a completely mixed brand of football.
 
The Xg last season fell off the more the team kept possession. It’s just sad that a young team, who were playing so well before this “style” was embedded, have been shackled, imo.

I think it’s easier to believe that the coaching has purposely increased possession and safer passes and sucked the creativity out of the team, rather than believing that Mudryk would have made much difference.
This is a popular stats take that just illustrates the pitfalls of focusing on only one metric.

Our possession being up in matches where we dropped points had far more to do with game state than any particular features of how Maresca plays. Obviously if we go behind early and the other team puts 11 behind the ball we'll have a lot of it but struggle to create chances.
 
I think Maresca hit his targets last season so you can’t ask for much more than that.

It’s also clear there are some concerns around his management style and ability so this season will be the acid test so to speak.
 
I think Maresca hit his targets last season so you can’t ask for much more than that.

It’s also clear there are some concerns around his management style and ability so this season will be the acid test so to speak.

What are his targets for this season? Last season he was adamant that Champions League qualification wasn't an actual must have in terms of targets set to him, so it's not like his targets seem to be unrealistic expectations.

I'd imagine the board will be happy if he consolidates this, and given the transfer window from them and their rivals, they should be pretty confident of achieving that again over the likes of Villa, Newcastle, Spurs & Utd.
 
What are his targets for this season? Last season he was adamant that Champions League qualification wasn't an actual must have in terms of targets set to him, so it's not like his targets seem to be unrealistic expectations.

I'd imagine the board will be happy if he consolidates this, and given the transfer window from them and their rivals, they should be pretty confident of achieving that again over the likes of Villa, Newcastle, Spurs & Utd.
Comfortable top 4,very good run in all cup competitions we are in with good emerging pattern of style of play.
 
What are his targets for this season? Last season he was adamant that Champions League qualification wasn't an actual must have in terms of targets set to him, so it's not like his targets seem to be unrealistic expectations.

I'd imagine the board will be happy if he consolidates this, and given the transfer window from them and their rivals, they should be pretty confident of achieving that again over the likes of Villa, Newcastle, Spurs & Utd.

No idea what the board's actual expectations and targets are, but yeah for me personally the aim would be to get a more comfortable CL qualification this time around (not having to scrape for it in the last few weeks or having to rely on others to slip up at the finish line) and just generally readying things up for a 26/27 season title challenge. Any cup success this season would be a nice bonus but not so much a requirement.

This doesn't seem too unrealistic of an expectation to me. Anything less than that would mean there's either been zero progress or even taking a step backwards from last season, both of which I would consider to be failing grades unless it were accompanied by something bonkers like a CL win. The squad has not lost or about to lose any key players to other clubs, the young players are once again a year more experienced and know Maresca's system better by now, not to mention big investments once again being made in the transfer market on new signings. Personally can't say I'm a huge fan of the players we've signed or are targeting to sign but they're still hugely expensive signings the club and/or Maresca believe will make the team better than before so if they don't then that's on their heads.
 
Comfortable top 4,very good run in all cup competitions we are in with good emerging pattern of style of play.

No idea what the board's actual expectations and targets are, but yeah for me personally the aim would be to get a more comfortable CL qualification this time around (not having to scrape for it in the last few weeks or having to rely on others to slip up at the finish line) and just generally readying things up for a 26/27 season title challenge. Any cup success this season would be a nice bonus but not so much a requirement.

This doesn't seem too unrealistic of an expectation to me. Anything less than that would mean there's either been zero progress or even taking a step backwards from last season, both of which I would consider to be failing grades unless it were accompanied by something bonkers like a CL win. The squad has not lost or about to lose any key players to other clubs, the young players are once again a year more experienced and know Maresca's system better by now, not to mention big investments once again being made in the transfer market on new signings. Personally can't say I'm a huge fan of the players we've signed or are targeting to sign but they're still hugely expensive signings the club and/or Maresca believe will make the team better than before so if they don't then that's on their heads.

This is what i was thinking, and as it stands i'd certainly have you favourites for a top 4 position, and can see you getting an extra 5-10 points on last seasons total, depending on how you handle the games round about the Champions League games, that's 1 difference from last season you might need to deal with.
 
This is what i was thinking, and as it stands i'd certainly have you favourites for a top 4 position, and can see you getting an extra 5-10 points on last seasons total, depending on how you handle the games round about the Champions League games, that's 1 difference from last season you might need to deal with.
We were good till December 26 against Fulham just two points off liverpool and four points better than arsenal after that we went to relegation form.

Thank fully we won 5 games from last 6 at the end to get into cl. Conference league helped us at the start and made us gained plenty. Needed better squad and board looked to strengthen it a welcome sign.
 
It’s just factual that, statistically, the Xg and quality of the chances created has decreased the more his style of play was implemented, just as it did at Leicester.

Chelsea aren’t good to watch and recycle possession too much. Watching the games, there are visible patterns, looking at the stats, there are visible patterns.

He is too lost in his possession ideology whe Chelsea have one of the quickest, youngest and most athletic teams in the division.

It’s a waste of time and energy.
This is a good point. With Chelsea's age profile they should be playing with a similar speed and tanacity as PSG. However, whenever I watch them they seem to play the game at a slower pace than some of the oldest teams in the league.
 
It will be quite interesting to see how he manages the squad in terms of game time.

Having Pedro, Jackson and Delap to rotate in 1 spot will be interesting. I wonder what players like Guiu think considering he wont get any game time.

Alot of players this season for Conference league but I doubt he will be making that many changes for the CL. So the likes of Palmer, Caceido, James, Enzo will be playing alot more.
 
It will be quite interesting to see how he manages the squad in terms of game time.

Having Pedro, Jackson and Delap to rotate in 1 spot will be interesting. I wonder what players like Guiu think considering he wont get any game time.

Alot of players this season for Conference league but I doubt he will be making that many changes for the CL. So the likes of Palmer, Caceido, James, Enzo will be playing alot more.

Guiu will have to go on loan anyway. He was 2nd in line behind Jackson and then we signed Delap. That was the signal that he needs a loan. Also we're not in the conference league anymore, which is where he got the bulk of his minutes last season. We can't rotate the entire team out and rest the main starters for the midweek games anymore.

The positive thing about Jackson and Pedro is that they're versatile and can play alongside a true 9 like Delap and then they also offer something different than Delap in the striker role itself. For me though, unless Maresca just sees Pedro as an Nkunku replacement to back up Palmer in the 10 (which is an awfully expensive use of resources) then this Pedro signing is a bit of a head scratcher.
 
Guiu will have to go on loan anyway. He was 2nd in line behind Jackson and then we signed Delap. That was the signal that he needs a loan. Also we're not in the conference league anymore, which is where he got the bulk of his minutes last season. We can't rotate the entire team out and rest the main starters for the midweek games anymore.

The positive thing about Jackson and Pedro is that they're versatile and can play alongside a true 9 like Delap and then they also offer something different than Delap in the striker role itself. For me though, unless Maresca just sees Pedro as an Nkunku replacement to back up Palmer in the 10 (which is an awfully expensive use of resources) then this Pedro signing is a bit of a head scratcher.

Fair enough, so having 3 forwards is still quite alot considering they are all expecting alot of minutes. Its CL now, so the strongest team will have to start in most games.

Whilst Jackson and Pedro are versatile, I dont see Palmer being dropped alot. Jackson can play on the wings but you have Madueke, Estavio, Neto, Murdryk to come back, whilst still having sterling, Felix etc.

Lets see how it all pans out.
 
Chelsea are such a weird club, and I'm not entirely sure why. They have been consistently one of the better sides in the league for like 20 years but seem empty, soulless and to be just a nothing club. Is it the fact that being in London means they're constantly fighting for the limelight or what? If they were to be relegated I swear they'd only be missed by Chelsea fans.
 
Chelsea are such a weird club, and I'm not entirely sure why. They have been consistently one of the better sides in the league for like 20 years but seem empty, soulless and to be just a nothing club. Is it the fact that being in London means they're constantly fighting for the limelight or what? If they were to be relegated I swear they'd only be missed by Chelsea fans.
It's because they bought about 50 players in two years and so now are going through the equivalent strategy of a washing machine cycle to sort their best team + coach. I think Maresca will be gone by Christmas personally, expectations are going to be for a real push into the top4 even 3 this season and I think high possession without a high press is a bad move in today's PL. That said, I think Chelsea without Maresca will be the dominant force in the PL in a couple of seasons, there's simply too much quality in the team and so much depth.
 
Chelsea are such a weird club, and I'm not entirely sure why. They have been consistently one of the better sides in the league for like 20 years but seem empty, soulless and to be just a nothing club. Is it the fact that being in London means they're constantly fighting for the limelight or what? If they were to be relegated I swear they'd only be missed by Chelsea fans.

I can think of some fairly obvious reasons why you think of them that way. They were the first - and most blatant - sugar daddy club of the premier league era - the OG financial dopers - which has coloured everything they've achieved since. Now they've gone straight from uncle Roman to a deranged yank hedge fund billonaire who thinks he can game the whole footballing system. Plus Stamford Bridge barely creeps into the top 10 biggest PL stadiums, their fans are notorious bell ends and their chants are shit. To be honest, it would be weirder if you saw them as anything different to the way you describe.
 
Last edited:
Chelsea are such a weird club, and I'm not entirely sure why. They have been consistently one of the better sides in the league for like 20 years but seem empty, soulless and to be just a nothing club. Is it the fact that being in London means they're constantly fighting for the limelight or what? If they were to be relegated I swear they'd only be missed by Chelsea fans.

They have a huge fanbase though and a decent history. They’ve won all the big trophies and are still competitive. They continue to sign very good and sometimes elite players I’m not sure what constitutes as a nothing club. They are a big club for sure.
 
I can think of some fairly obvious reasons why you think of them that way. They were the first - and most blatant - sugar daddy club of the premier league era - the OG financial dopers - which has coloured everything they've achieved since. Now they've gone straight from uncle Roman to a deranged yank hedge fund billonaire who thinks he can game the whole footballing system. Plus Stamford Bridge barely creeps into the top 10 biggest PL stadiums, their fans are notorious bell ends and their chants are shit. To be honest, it would be weirder if you saw them as anything different to the way you describe.
Jack Walker with Blackburn takes that title if you want to start at 1992.
 
Fair enough, so having 3 forwards is still quite alot considering they are all expecting alot of minutes. Its CL now, so the strongest team will have to start in most games.

Whilst Jackson and Pedro are versatile, I dont see Palmer being dropped alot. Jackson can play on the wings but you have Madueke, Estavio, Neto, Murdryk to come back, whilst still having sterling, Felix etc.

Lets see how it all pans out.

My gut feeling at the moment is that someone will offer us a decent fee for Jackson later in the summer and we'll bite and let him leave, which would be a shame.

I don't think we'll see Mudryk play a game for Chelsea ever again.

Our wing options are Gittens, George, Neto, Madueke and Estevao. That's 5 players for 2 positions. Not exactly overkill, especially when 2 of them are inexperienced teenagers. Sterling and Felix aren't part of the plans. It's up to the club to find solutions for them, but I doubt Maresca sees them as part of his squad.
 
This is a good point. With Chelsea's age profile they should be playing with a similar speed and tanacity as PSG. However, whenever I watch them they seem to play the game at a slower pace than some of the oldest teams in the league.

Maresca does favour possession and control over pace and risk taking, but I also think one of the big problems we had last season was that we were usually terrible at executing counter attacks. When we got it right, we looked like a lightening quick team with pace all over the pitch (Jackson's goal vs Palace and Newcastle at home are good examples of this). But we often got it wrong and then we get bogged down into a game of trying to unlock a set defence in a low block, which has been our biggest kryptonite for many years.
 
Last edited:
Walker was just a local fan with deep pockets, once they won the league he didn't have anywhere near the interest, or the finances to pump Blackburn up into the same type of thing the mega clubs are now.
 
Walker was just a local fan with deep pockets, once they won the league he didn't have anywhere near the interest, or the finances to pump Blackburn up into the same type of thing the mega clubs are now.

Jack Walker was more akin to Matthew Harding, just on a larger scale.

Chelsea under Abramovich is more comparable to Berlusconi's Milan and Moratti's Inter than Blackburn under Walker.
 
Last edited:
Jack Walker was more akin to Matthew Harding, just on a larger scale.

Chelsea under Abramovich is more comparable to Berlusconi's Milan and Moratti's Inter than Blackburn under Walker.

Yeah Jack Walker was not even close to Abramovich. Chelsea were a real sugar daddy club, he came in and they were spending record sums on vast amounts of players season after season, it was like playing Football Manager with cheats on. The level of quality and depth they were able to bring in so swiftly was incredible and unseen here for sure.
 
It's all relative - he was a sugar daddy, but Abramovic took things to an extra level with the amounts spent and the crazy influx of world class talent. It had never been seen before. The added facts he was a Russian oligarch and it was done with corrupted money just further emphasizes why it was ushering in a new era.
 
I am afraid all the Pep poundland clones are just annoyingly passive-aggressive smugs?
 
Crazy squad.


Was actually thinking about Quenda earlier. He'll stay on loan at Sporting this season but by the time he arrives they might have about 10 wingers for him to compete with.

Feels like another one they've signed because he wasn't too expensive and they'll just flip him if he doesn't establish himself as a first teamer.